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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. In Book 6, where do Leah and Anatole live?

2. What does Ruth May have to do to get her spirit in the bone, according to Nelson?

3. Where does Adah go to school?

4. When was the last time that the mother and her three daughters were all together?

5. How much money does the United States provide for loyalty?

Short Essay Questions

1. What regrets does Orleanna voice about her family and the situation in the Congo?

2. What does Anatole find in his hut? What is this a sign of? What happens to Anatole?

3. Why do you think Adah says that the loss of life isn't always unwelcome?

4. Orleanna characterizes Nathan as someone who stands still. What does she mean by this?

5. What do Rachel and Adah learn? From where do they each learn this?

6. What happens during the big hunt?

7. What does Nelson give to Ruth May? What does he tell her to do with it?

8. What happens to Rachel in her life? Do you think she is happy?

9. Why does Rachel think that she can't go back to the United States now?

10. What does Leah want to do with the men in the village? Who is not happy about this? How does Leah get her way?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Kingsolver narrates the novel through five characters. How does she make the characters sound and feel different? What effect does the five narrators have on the novel? Why do you think Kingsolver used this device in the novel? What unique insights does each character give about the Congo, the family, or other aspects of the novel?

Essay Topic 2

Kingsolver brings the United States into the novel in several different ways. What role did the United States play in the Congo at a national and village level? What does Kingsolver seem to think about the United States' role in the events in the Congo? Do you think the United States should have been involved in the Congo?

Essay Topic 3

What is the symbolism of the green mamba in the novel? Why do you think Ruth May chose to think of the green mamba instead of somewhere else?

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