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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Why does Hyeonseo not start kindergarten in Hyesan as she had thought she would?
(a) Her mother's job is transferred to a new city.
(b) The family's house burns down and they are relocated to a new city.
(c) Her father's job is transferred to a new city.
(d) Her mother decides to teach her at home.

2. On what instrument did Hyeonseo teach herself to play her favorite song?
(a) The samisen.
(b) The xylophone.
(c) The violin.
(d) The accordion.

3. In what season did Hyeonseo and her family move to the riverfront house in Hyesan?
(a) Summer.
(b) Spring.
(c) Autumn.
(d) Winter.

4. In what sport did Hyeonseo excel enough to represent her school in a tournament while living in Hyesan?
(a) Ice skating.
(b) Cricket.
(c) Taekwando.
(d) Long distance running.

5. When the Socialist Youth League performed work in the summer, they dug tunnels around Hyeonseo's school. What type of work did they engage in during the other three seasons that year?
(a) Journalistic.
(b) Architectural.
(c) Economic.
(d) Agricultural.

6. At what age are North Koreans forced to join the Socialist Youth League?
(a) 14.
(b) 10.
(c) 18.
(d) 12.

7. What location in Hyesan did Hyeonseo name as a "common site for public executions" (73)?
(a) The National Museum.
(b) The airport.
(c) The public square.
(d) The riverbank.

8. What is the rough translation of the North Korean ideological term juche?
(a) Worship.
(b) Self-reliance.
(c) Greatness.
(d) Homage.

9. At what age does Hyeonseo first visit South Korea?
(a) 14.
(b) 28.
(c) 32.
(d) 20.

10. Hyeonseo remarks that the family's home by the river in Hyesan was perfect for what?
(a) Learning to ice skate.
(b) Learning to sail.
(c) Her own gardening hobby.
(d) Her mother's illicit enterprises.

11. To what figure is Chapter 14's title referring in its statement that "The great heart has stopped beating" on the chapter's title page?
(a) Kim Jong-un.
(b) Hyeonseo's father.
(c) Kim Jong-Il.
(d) Kim Il-sung.

12. What did Hyeonseo's mother do immediately upon seeing her husband in the Hyesan hospital?
(a) She hugs him.
(b) She faints.
(c) She screams.
(d) She sobs.

13. At what age does Hyeonseo witness her first public execution?
(a) Twelve.
(b) Fourteen.
(c) Seven.
(d) Nine.

14. What does Hyeonseo say is the only "permitted outlet for spiritual fervor" (41) in North Korea?
(a) Kim worship.
(b) One Catholic mass per year.
(c) The business trade.
(d) Self-criticism sessions.

15. Hyeonseo's first memory consists of almost dying in what way?
(a) Almost suffocating.
(b) Almost being beaten to death by a soldier.
(c) Almost drowning.
(d) Almost getting hit by a train.

Short Answer Questions

1. What quality of Hyesan does Hyeonseo say leads to its status as a moneymaking town?

2. What was listed as Hyeonseo's father's cause of death after her mother had bribed the hospital authorities to falsify it?

3. What aspect of Hyeonseo's mother's character does Hyeonseo say is unusual for a woman of high songbun?

4. Why does Hyeonseo's mother carry a candle to the door when meeting Hyeonseo's future father and her future husband for the second time?

5. What unconventional and technically illegal hairstyle did Hyeonseo wear while attending school in Hyesan?

(see the answer keys)

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