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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. Who is NOT someone Deja names as someone she wishes she could talk to after watching the attacks of 9/11 on video?

2. When Deja returns from Ben's house, she blurts out that she had not known about what historical event?

3. What event led to America's entry into World War II?

4. How many of the terrorists responsible for 9/11 were from the United Arab Emirates?

5. What candy does Sabeen bring from home and offer to Deja and Ben?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Deja feel about her father's mysterious illness?

2. What is the significance of Deja's realization that "History is alive" (101)?

3. What major realization does Deja have at the end of the day when Pop visits her school?

4. What is Deja's reason for feeling that she must skip school in order to visit the 9/11 Memorial on a weekday?

5. What does the baklava symbolize within the narrative when Deja gives a container of it to a homeless man?

6. How is the novel's motif of sound depicted within the scene when Deja watches the video of a plane hitting the first Twin Tower?

7. How is the theme of guilt brought up within the dinner at Sabeen's house?

8. What is the symbolism of mourning doves within the narrative?

9. What is the symbolism of the Avalon Family Shelter's pancakes?

10. What is demonstrated about Deja's character arc when she says, "I feel like I've passed the biggest test. Just by being me" (114)?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Explicate the theme of family bonds within Jewell Parker Rhodes's novel Towers Falling. What is the author's message regarding family bonds and how do you know?

Essay Topic 2

What is the author's message regarding patriotism in Jewell Parker Rhodes's novel Towers Falling and what themes does the author employ in order to send these messages to the reader?

Essay Topic 3

How is the topic of knowledge treated within Jewell Parker Rhodes's novel Towers Falling and how does its treatment relate to the book's depicted messages?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,106 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample