View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. How many years of Tha'mma's married life did she spend in a succession of railway colonies?

2. How much taller was Kerry than the narrator?

3. What did May do the first time she met Tridib?

4. Where did Ila's parents buy her and Nick a flat in London?

5. After the narrator argues with Ila on Brick Street, how long is it before he sees her again?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did Ila's parents arrange for the present they got her and Nick for their wedding?

2. Why does Ila think there is a kind of heroism in the deaths of Alan and Dan?

3. How does Tha'mma feel about a promotion Shaheb receives?

4. Why does Nick say that he left his job in Kuwait?

5. What does the narrator say about Tha'mma's job?

6. What did May remember that Tridib's room looked like the first time she saw it?

7. What does Nick do for Ila and her housemates?

8. What happened between Tha'mma and the narrator's mother shortly after Tha'mma retired?

9. What did May and the narrator do after breakfast the morning after he stayed at her flat?

10. What did Tridib think of May when he saw her as a baby?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Ila and Nick marry. When does Nick begin having affairs? How does Ila face the fact that he is having an affair? How does the way that she handles the issue affect the marriage and her relationship with Nick?

Essay Topic 2

Even though they are cousins, the narrator has feelings for Ila. How long did the narrator have feelings for Ila? Why could those feelings never be acted upon?

Essay Topic 3

Ila, Robi, and the narrator go to a nightclub. Why is Robi upset with how Ila behaves at the nightclub? What does his attitude reveal about gender roles in India at that time?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 960 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample