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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 does the confrontation at the train station indicate about the Third Reich's concerns?

2. Which of Helmut's family portraits does Papi usually prefer?

3. What does the farmer's son tell Lore?

4. Who helps Helmut obtain consistent food?

5. What does Helmut do when he meets the refugees?

Short Essay Questions

1. Helmut does not ever speak of Germany's purge of its own population. Does Helmut, as a common civilian, know about the prison camps in other parts of Germany? Does it make a difference in his beliefs?

2. Mutti tries to burn the badges but they do not burn all the way. Lore tries to throw them deep into the river, but buries them in the bushes when this does not work. What do the badges and the efforts to rid them symbolize?

3. Germany is in the midst of war and has been for several years. The second bombing that Helmut experiences is the worst so far. Describe the new changes and routine to which the inhabitants of Berlin must adapt.

4. Gladigau is first Papi's, then Helmut's employer. Gladigau does more than just pay his workers. How is Gladigau an important figure, especially to Helmut?

5. When the farmer's son taunts Lore and pushes her down, the twins throw rocks at him. What does this show about the children?

6. When Lore offers to buy food from the woman who gives her bread and milk, she asks if Lore has anything other than money. Why does the woman not prefer money?

7. As Lore and her siblings walk on, some seem suspicious of their backgrounds but people usually help them anyway. Why do some people look at Lore's family with disdain but eventually help?

8. Helmut is cast to the side with the weak during physical education. Helmut tries to "prove himself" for whom and why?

9. On the first day of their trip to Oma's, Juri twists an ankle. How does this foreshadow the rest of the journey?

10. Refugees come through Berlin and some speak of a brutal Soviet army the size of a continent. Others deny their truths and say it is not so. Why is it hard to know what is true and what is not? Who is right?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Many characters in the novel are shown doing both good and bad deeds. Write about what makes a person good or bad. What goes into the title of good or bad?

Essay Topic 2

Helmut listens to the radio for Germany's progress. At the same time, he notices an emptying of Berlin. The two are correlated, but it is a mystery to Helmut. What is the correlation and what makes it difficult for Helmut to see how the victories abroad are tied to the city's emptiness?

Essay Topic 3

Helmut is a photographer's assistant, Lore looks at her family photo, and Micha compares his Opa's pictures to Hitler and Jozef's. Explain the significance of pictures in Seiffert's novel. Without going into too much detail of each picture, write about how pictures in general tell a person's truth and lies.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,657 words (approx. 6 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample