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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 was the roof made of?

2. What was special about the animal killed by the hunters in Chapter 12?

3. What did Lettice say Hugh suffered from while she was away?

4. What did Kamau want the bwana to bring him from Nairobi?

5. How did Elspeth protect Twinkle?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why did Robin agree with the Italian priests in their refusal to baptize or help Njombo?

2. How did the Europeans view the difference between a bribe and a tip?

3. What did Tilly think was the ultimate reason for the Europeans to be in Africa?

4. How did Elspeth use the imagery of the kitchen beaters to convey the sense that Europeans and Africans were living in parallel worlds?

5. How did the Kikuyu deal with the suffering of animals?

6. Why were Tilly and Lettice suspicious of Mr. Roos' behavior toward Elspeth?

7. Why did Hereward express a willingness to die in a violent storm?

8. How did Lettice Palmer view Hereward's desperate attempts to impose discipline on his workers?

9. Why were the villagers so concerned about the python near the village?

10. How did the Kikuyu and Masai differ in their approaches to hunting?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Early in the book, Robin Huxley had a confrontation with the locals over the way he wanted his family's house built. Why was Robin so determined to recreate an English-style house in Africa? Why were the Africans so opposed to some of Robin's ideas? In what ways would adopting the local customs make it easier to settle in to a new area? Is it always advisable, or even possible, to recreate a certain lifestyle in a foreign land? What are the benefits of adopting the local traditions? Do you think Robin and the other Europeans were concerned about losing their European identity if they adopted too many local customs?

Essay Topic 2

A discussion about the European versus African concept of the passage of time prompted Lettice Palmer to suggest that perhaps the Europeans were wrong to be attempting to change the African culture. This is one of the only times in the book that a European suggests that the Africans' culture should be left alone. Did the other Europeans share Lettice's view? Did they seem to think about the issue at all or were they more concerned about making their way in Africa, regardless of what happened to the natives? Did the Europeans acknowledge that a complex culture existed around them?

Essay Topic 3

Elspeth, despite her European heritage, sincerely believed that a charm would protect her duiker, Twinkle. In what ways did her belief illustrate how her upbringing was becoming essentially African? Why was she more open to the notion of protective charms than the adults around her? Was she doing a better job adapting to local traditions and belief-systems?

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