View a FREE sample

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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What does the homeless man Kazu hears telling another his life story say happened after he lost his job?
(a) His wife died.
(b) His house burned down.
(c) His father died.
(d) His wife filed for divorce.

2. What withered flower does Kazu feel represents his life because it is "closed off with nowhere to go" (160)?
(a) A daisy.
(b) A rose.
(c) A lily.
(d) A lotus.

3. What does the author intersperse between the dialogue Kazu hears between the two women at the Ueno Royal Art Museum?
(a) Informational panel about the artwork.
(b) A radio announcement about the Imperial family.
(c) Dialogue between two museum guards.
(d) A remembered conversation between Kazo and his wife.

4. What did Kazu urge his granddaughter not to do in the note he left for her?
(a) Do not think of him.
(b) Do no sell his place.
(c) Do not tell her mother.
(d) Do not go looking for him.

5. What did Shige say he and Kazu needed to find shelter from the day after he invited Kazu to his hut?
(a) A snowstorm.
(b) A police raid of the homeless tent city.
(c) The imperial family's visit.
(d) A typhoon.

6. How old was Kazu when he started living in Ueno Park?
(a) 45.
(b) 67.
(c) 27.
(d) 88.

7. Which of Kazu's family members was the first to die not long after he returned home?
(a) His daughter.
(b) His mother.
(c) His father.
(d) His granddaughter.

8. Why did Kazu not want Shige to tell him what he had done to hurt his family?
(a) Kazu did not care about Shige.
(b) Kazu felt he would then have to share his story with Shige.
(c) Kazu was afraid he might have to turn Shige in to the police.
(d) Kazu feared if Shige confessed a crime he will have to kill Kazu.

9. When Kazo reflects on his life in Tokyo, what does he say he was too busy working to do?
(a) Worry about his looks or flirt with other women.
(b) Go to the movies.
(c) Eat at nice restaurants.
(d) Watch television.

10. What are some other things people ask God for in the notes they leave at the temple?
(a) To have a healthy baby.
(b) To make someone fall in love with them.
(c) To win the lottery.
(d) To never be homeless.

11. What do the pictures exhibited at the Ueno Royal Art Museum display?
(a) Fishing villages.
(b) Roses.
(c) Portraits of the homeless.
(d) Ginko Trees.

12. What took up most of the space in Shige's hut?
(a) Cans.
(b) Books.
(c) Family photos.
(d) Clothes.

13. Kazu sees a man emerge from a cardboard hut near Shinobazu Pond with something that looks like what, which belonged to Shige?
(a) His books.
(b) Emile, his cat.
(c) His calendar.
(d) His jacket.

14. What are the occasional notices outside Ueno Park there to inform the homeless people about?
(a) Local soup kitchen hours.
(b) Free clothing drives.
(c) Area food pantries.
(d) When they need to have their belongings cleared out of the area.

15. How old did Shige tell Kazu his son was when he left the family?
(a) 4.
(b) 17.
(c) 6 months.
(d) 10.

Short Answer Questions

1. What do the two businessmen Kazu observes walking toward the Shimizu Kannon Temple discuss on their walk?

2. What did Kazu find interesting about the calendar hung up in Shige's hut?

3. What does Kazu say the cabaret hostesses' perfume smelled like when they danced?

4. How long after Shige invited Kazu to his hut for the first time did Kazu die?

5. What did Yoko do for her father after Setsuko dies?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 623 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample