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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In Section 2 of "A Blaze of Clouds," what does Yasuko reach for every time the house shakes?
(a) A candle.
(b) The bed cover.
(c) Matchbox.
(d) Shingo's hand.

2. During dinner in Chapter 3, how many times do candles blow out?
(a) 1-2.
(b) 5.
(c) 3-4.
(d) 2.

3. What type of flowers grow near Shingo's neighbor's house?
(a) Wood poppy.
(b) Sunflowers.
(c) Orchid.
(d) Maiden lily.

4. What name is on the gate of the house where Shuichi's mistress lives?
(a) Ikeda.
(b) Arai.
(c) Sato.
(d) Hayashi.

5. What is the name of a maid Shingo attempts to remember?
(a) Aika.
(b) Kayo.
(c) Haru.
(d) Kiko.

Short Answer Questions

1. How old is Fusako?

2. When did a geisha tell Shingo that she had considered committing suicide?

3. How many middle-school pregnancies had there been in South Tsugaru?

4. How long did Fusako and her children stay with her parents after Shuichi brought them home from the country?

5. What direction does Shingo sit facing when the family eats meals together?

Short Essay Questions

1. What sound does Shingo hear when he wakes in the night in Chapter 1?

2. What wakes Shingo at the beginning of Chapter 8?

3. In "Chestnuts," what birds does Shingo see?

4. What music is Kikuko playing at the beginning of Chapter 3?

5. What is noticed about the trees in the garden after the typhoon?

6. How did Toriyama's wife torture him when she was going through the change of life?

7. Describe the photograph of Toriyama that was at his funeral.

8. What had the newspapers predicted about the 210th day of the year?

9. Describe the circumstances of Kikuko's birth.

10. What does the house look like where Shuichi's mistress lives?

(see the answer keys)

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