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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. Judge Fielding acknowledges that Etta Heine is

2. Hatsue guesses that Ishmael knew earlier about the freighter

3. Reading, for Nels, causes a flareup of his

4. Nels Gundersson gets Dr. Whitman to admit that the blood on the gaff is likely from

5. When Ishmael begged Hatsue to hold him

Short Essay Questions

1. The idea of inclement weather has been woven throughout the story, including the heavy snowfall that has caused problems during the trial of Kabuo Miyamoto. What inspires Ishmael's decision to check with the coast guard about weather conditions at the time of Carl Heine's demise?

2. What, ultimately, could have been Carl Heine's greatest failing, according to Ishmael?

3. Nels Gudmundsson makes a fascinating statement about Hooks' tactics with regard to racism. Discuss this.

4. What is peculiar about islanders and their relationships?

5. Why do you think Ishmael does not tell his mother about the records he found at the Coast Guard office?

6. Describe Ishmael's experience as he views the devastation from the storm, the sunken docks and ravaged town. What does it mean?

7. Learning that Carl has kept Kabuo's fishing rod all these years suggests that Kabuo might be telling the truth? Explain this.

8. What scenario has prosecutor, Alvin Hooks, cooked up to try to bolster his case against Kabuo?

9. What finally inspires Ishmael to take the Coast Guard report to Hatsue?

10. Why does the author refer more than once to the smell of snow?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Guterman mentions that occasionally Canadian Indians came across the border to help with the strawberry harvest in the islands off of Washington. Research and write an expository essay about these temporary workers, and teach your reader everything you can about their lifestyle and their culture. This may take some library research. Find out the names of the tribes or bands -- choose one island if necessary, such as Bainbridge, and learn what you can about the history of Indian pickers and processors.

Essay Topic 2

Research and write an in-depth essay about the Japanese internment camps in the US during World War II. If possible, find someone to interview who has some childhood memories of the experience and interview him or her. Has the US, in your opinion, reconsidered its decision to place people in camps when their native country is at war with us? Has it reconsidered the decisions that were made back then? Is there a general consensus about the advisability of such a program? If possible, include some photos.

Essay Topic 3

Review Hatsue's childhood in this book and join the Imada family in your imagination. Write an essay about the Imadas' lifestyle and determine whether it is one that you could tolerate or not. Were there certain choices made by the Imadas that made life more difficult for them, or were they totally at the mercy of their circumstances? What about their lives is pleasant, and what is not?

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