View a FREE sample

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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. When Mahmoud and his family meet the smuggler at the designated meeting point, when does he say the boat will leave?
(a) Right now.
(b) Next week.
(c) Tomorrow.
(d) In an hour.

2. When Mahmoud's family receives the name of a nearby hotel that "accepts Syrians" (105), why do they not stay there?
(a) It is in a dangerous neighborhood.
(b) They cannot find it and eventually give up.
(c) It is too expensive.
(d) It is already full of other families sharing rooms.

3. Ivan's favorite team, The Industriales, is what type of team?
(a) A basketball team.
(b) A soccer team.
(c) A baseball team.
(d) A lacrosse team.

4. In what year does Isabel's narrative from Havana, Cuba begin?
(a) 1983.
(b) 1994.
(c) 2001.
(d) 1959.

5. Whose face is featured prominently on the floor of Isabel's boat?
(a) Che Guevara.
(b) Fidel Castro.
(c) Joseph Stalin.
(d) Pablo Escobar.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is Josef's father's profession at the start of the novel?

2. The horrific historical event called Kristallnacht means what in the English language?

3. When Josef's ship slows down, causing his father to think that the ship is being turned around, what is the true cause of the change in speed?

4. What is NOT among Fidel Castro's oft-repeated list of the three greatest achievements of the Cuban Revolution?

5. In what year does the telling of Josef's narrative begin?

Short Essay Questions

1. What are the only items that Isabel and the other passengers on the tiny boat have room to bring with them on the journey to Florida from Cuba?

2. Compare and contrast Josef's thoughts about the ship's full speed with Captain Schroeder's comments about the ship's full speed.

3. How is Isabel's kitten used by the author to send a message about hunger and fear?

4. Why does Isabel feel awe in response to the riots in Cuba in addition to fear?

5. What happens the first two times Isabel's father tries to journey to America from Cuba?

6. How does Mahmoud feel about invisibility?

7. Why does Mahmoud's family choose Germany as a place to run to when they leave Syria?

8. What event is just about to happen when the motor of Isabel's family's boat splutters and dies?

9. How does Josef feel about invisibility?

10. How does the author go about portraying Mahmoud as an empathetic soul?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,096 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample