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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Where does Mr. Pond end up taking Sojeat, Ravi, and Arn when he asks them to climb in the trunk of his car?
(a) To Peter's mother's house.
(b) To a Thai bistro.
(c) To the home of the leader with the white shorts.
(d) To an American building with food and music.

2. What is Arn's reaction to seeing his sister again?
(a) It causes him to want to run away.
(b) It makes him hate Sombo.
(c) It creates in him an inability to kill.
(d) It restores in him the will to live.

3. Thinking he hears gunfire one night at the hospital, Arn awakes with a start and reaches for his gun. What is actually making the sound that he mistakes for gunfire?
(a) Kids whispering across the room.
(b) Chickens in the yard.
(c) Starlings in the tree.
(d) Rain on the roof.

4. When he is allowed a special privilege by the leader, what does he find himself doing for the first time in three years?
(a) Thinking about his mother.
(b) Laughing.
(c) Hoping he'll live a long life.
(d) Regretting his poor treatment of Siv when they first met.

5. The group of child soldiers led by Sombo and referred to as Little Fish with the Big Sting is comprised of how many children?
(a) 10.
(b) 20.
(c) 80.
(d) 40.

Short Answer Questions

1. What happens the first time Arn and and another Little Fish go to drop grenades into the tanks of the Vietnamese soldiers?

2. The author uses the occasion of Arn's transition into the role of soldier to refer back to events at the start of the novel. What are those events and what triggers them in Arn's thoughts?

3. Though at first Arn is furious with Mr. Pond for taking chances that lead to him being shot by a Thai guard, Mr. Pond then reveals news that makes Arn ecstatic. What is that news?

4. What happens to cause Arn to say that now "even the earth is our enemy" (126)?

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

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the author's purpose for including Arn's comment that "now even the earth is our enemy"? (126)

2. Why does Arn begin to shake after he boards the bus with the other refugees?

3. What words does the dying lady in the village spit at Arn and why do her words hurt him so much?

4. The theme of fame arises once again when the leader with the white shorts notices Arn due to the attention he has gotten for his music and dancing, so he tells Arn to come to his house to entertain at his party. What message is being sent about fame in this scene?

5. For what reasons does Arn choose Sojeat and Ravi as his two favorites when Mr. Pond asks him for two names?

6. What is the author's purpose in including the two conflicting accounts of the war emanating from Sombo's radio?

7. Describe the parting of Arn and Mek. What is its significance within the course of the narrative?

8. How is the theme of family shaped and twisted within the narrative when the camp erupts into chaos at the news that the Vietnamese soldiers are close?

9. When the leader allows Arn to ride his white horse to a neighboring camp to deliver a letter, why does Arn not run away?

10. Why does Arn turn over all of the dead bodies of the villagers to look into their faces?

(see the answer keys)

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