1. At one point, Arn becomes so hungry and thirsty and eats fruit off the ground even though there is something wrong with it. What's wrong with it?
(a) It is been pecked at by many birds.
(b) It is rotten and infested with maggots.
(c) It is been partially digested by an animal and he finds it in animal excrement.
(d) It is not yet ripe.

2. What method does Mek, the new music teacher, tell Arn that he uses to survive?
(a) He dreams.
(b) He composes music.
(c) He watches the birds fly.
(d) He thinks about one hour at a time.

3. After Arns separates from the other boys, he wants to get to Thailand. What is the only landmark he knows about that will signal him he's about to get to Thailand?
(a) He knows he will have to cross a series of three bridges.
(b) He knows he will have to cross a river.
(c) He knows he will have to wade through a swamp.
(d) He knows he will have to climb the tallest mountain of three peaks on the horizon.

4. When Arn becomes delirious with hunger, he sees the monkey family and then his own family and they chant words to him over and over. What are those words he hears them chant?
(a) "Come for us soon."
(b) "See you again."
(c) "Peace be with you."
(d) "Why didn't you save us."

5. What does the new music teacher give Arn as the reason that he does not care whether he lives or dies?
(a) His children are all dead and he does not know where his wife is.
(b) His passion for music has been twisted by the war into something ugly and he can no longer bear to teach it to others.
(c) He has had malaria for months and it has robbed him of his energy.
(d) His true passion is for the theater arts, so he is disappointed that he is being forced to teach music instead.

Short Answer Questions

1. When the Vietnamese soldiers kill everyone in the village by drawing them out with offers of free rice, why does Arn look at each dead person's face as he walks through the village?

2. What happens to the old man who is Arn's first music teacher?

3. What is the event that first causes Arn to think maybe the Khmer Rouge have evil intentions?

4. What event causes Arn to question whether Sombo is still his friend or not?

5. Why does Arn at first hesitate to volunteer when a high-ranking Khmer Rouge soldier asks who wants to play music in a band within the camp?

(see the answer key)

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