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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. What rights is Zeitoun waiting for after being arrested?

2. What is the death toll when Kathy picks her kids up from the new school?

3. What does Zeitoun get upset with a guard for?

4. What do the soldiers turn the bus depot into?

5. What makes Zeitoun's children sad during the flood?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why don't Zeitoun and Nasser talk much while in their cell?

2. Why is Ahmad so upset when he learns that Zeitoun is in prison?

3. After Zeitoun has been missing for more than a week, what does his family hope for?

4. How does Zeitoun get a message out of prison and to his wife?

5. What happens just after Kathy and her daughter say a prayer in the living?

6. What deal are the men in the cell with Zeitoun offered?

7. How does Kathy see the damage to her house, and how does she respond?

8. What does Kathy do when she is not told where her husband's trial will be held?

9. What kind of medical symptoms does Zeitoun experience before he gets help?

10. What makes Kathy decide to put her kids in a school in Phoenix?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The characters in this book had their own goals and motivations. Select four characters and write their main motivation throughout the book and how this goal affected the characters around them.

Essay Topic 2

What are some of the key examples of gratitude in this book, and how do these instances affect that characters involved in those scenes?

Essay Topic 3

How does knowing that Hurricane Katrina was a real historical event change the way you view this book and the events in it?

(see the answer keys)

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