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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 Bob do to comfort Ruby after Stella's death?

2. How does Stella know a baby elephant is coming to the mall?

3. What did Ivan use to decorate the refrigerator door?

4. What makes George's cheeks wet in the section 'Home is Where the Heart Is'?

5. Where does Bob sleep while Ivan works at night?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did Mack treat Ivan when the gorilla was young?

2. What does Stella mean when she says, "Humans can surprise you sometimes"?

3. How do Ivan and his sister get their (original) names?

4. How is Bob affected by Ruby's story of being saved by humans?

5. How does Ruby's presence affect Stella?

6. How does Ivan react to Ruby's first solo act in Mack's show?

7. What is the significance of the X's that Ivan draws on his painted jungle wall?

8. How does Mack train Ruby to replace Stella?

9. Why was Ivan able to survive the transition from the jungle to a human habitat while his sister died?

10. How does Ivan console Ruby after Stella's death?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Part of Ivan’s story is told through flashbacks. What event prompts Ivan to begin to remember his past? What does Ivan remember? How do these memories affect the decisions he makes?

Essay Topic 2

Why do you think Bob wants to remain “wild” instead of living with humans like most dogs? Why do you think Bob trusts Ivan? Compare Bob’s experience with humans to Ivan’s experience with humans.

Essay Topic 3

Ivan is the narrator of the story. Why do you think the author chose to have him tell the story instead of writing it from a human’s perspective? What do we learn from Ivan’s point of view that we might not learn had the story been told from a human’s point of view?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,174 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample