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

Short Answer Questions

1. What document does Maxine's mother have mailed to America?

2. How does Brave Orchid view her sister when Moon Orchid first arrives?

3. How is Moon Orchid's daughter's husband described?

4. What does the piece of wood smell like when the girls burn it?

5. For what profession does Brave Orchid tell the dealer she will train the slave girl?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Communism is mentioned several times throughout the novel, and has an impact on the narrator's life.

Part 1) Why is the narrator interested in understanding Communism? What events in her life cause her to relate to Communism?

Part 2) What are some of the things the narrator has been told about Communism growing up? Explain why you think she has been told these things, and what impact they have on her.

Part 3) How does the narrator's mother feel about Communism? Explain how you think her mother's feelings about Communism affect the narrator.

Essay Topic 2

This novel has several autobiographical elements, but we never learn if the narrator and the author are the same person.

Part 1) After learning about autobiographies in class, do you view this novel as an autobiography? Explain why or why not using at least three examples from the text to support your position.

Part 2) Do you think the author and the narrator are the same? Explain why or why not.

Essay Topic 3

Why do you think the narrator had trouble speaking in school? Why do you think she was able to overcome this difficulty later in life? How does the end of the novel relate to the difficulties she had speaking as a child?

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