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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. Thi describes her mother's scent by using the name of what brand?

2. Bo tells Thi that when he was what age, his grandfather had enrolled Bo in a French school?

3. Bo explains that the term "nguy" (221) could be applied to anyone in what location?

4. In what year did Bo arrive in Saigon for the first time?

5. The violence in Saigon resulted in the destruction of whose opium?

Short Essay Questions

1. What do the glamourous photographs of Ma symbolize to Thi after she becomes an adult?

2. What is Thi's hypothesis about why one particular person in her life is difficult for her to write about?

3. How does Bui elicit pathos within Chapter 7, entitled "Heroes and Losers"?

4. Who was Truong Chinh and whom did he emulate?

5. For what specific purpose does Bui depict Ma's dedication to her children?

6. What happens when Bo's father visits Bo for the first time in 20 years?

7. Describe the origins of Bui's memoir The Best We Could Do.

8. How does Bui visually depict the many different perspectives about April 30, 1975?

9. One day a box arrives at the Bui home and it is from Vietnam. What is contained inside?

10. Whom does Thi name as being a difficult person for her to write about?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Explicate the theme of grief within The Best We Could Do. What is Bui’s message regarding grief and how do you know?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss how and why Bui instills three different humanist messages into the narrative of The Best We Could Do.

Essay Topic 3

How is the role of motherhood treated within The Best We Could Do and how does its treatment relate to the memoir's depicted messages?

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