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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is the name of the boy that Naomi remembers playing hide-and-seek with as a child?

2. What is the name of the town that Naomi and her family are relocated to?

3. What ethnicity is the officer in Naomi's dream?

4. As a child, how does Naomi remember the sounds of music that filled the house?

5. In the opening chapter, what is Naomi's Uncle doing in the grass?

Short Essay Questions

1. What story does Rough Lock Bill tell to Kenji and Naomi when they are out exploring the woods?

2. What is Naomi accused of when she is at the bathhouse, and how does she respond?

3. How does Naomi cope with the truth of her mother's life and death?

4. What change is made in Naomi and Stephen's education after Uncle arrives to Slocan?

5. What is the rest of the Nakane family's reaction to Aunt Emily's revolutionary thinking?

6. What does Obasan keep stored in the package that Aunt Emily has sent to them?

7. Why does Naomi's mother leave her, and what is Naomi's reaction?

8. What was life like for Naomi while she was living on the beet farm?

9. What happened when Kenji convinced Naomi to go on his raft for an adventure with him?

10. What does Naomi know about the people that made up her community in Slocan?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

When Naomi is a child, she is frequently told the story of Momotaro.

Part1.) Describe the story of Momotaro as it was told to Naomi.

Part 2.) Compare / contrast Momotar's story with Naomi's childhood story. What was the same about their upbringings? What was different?

Part 3.) Explain how Momotaro's story has a much larger effect on Naomi as she is remembering it in her adulthood.

Essay Topic 2

Kogawa chooses to write this novel in a very unconventional way. Explain the structure of the novel and discuss whether or not this use of structure was effective in telling Naomi's story. Why or why not?

Essay Topic 3

There are many deaths throughout the novel, but Uncle's seems to be the most important. Describe the effect that Uncle's death has on Naomi's life and explain why Uncle's death may be considered the most important death in the novel.

(see the answer keys)

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