A Ladder to the Sky Quiz

Take our free A Ladder to the Sky quiz below, with 25 multiple choice questions that help you test your knowledge. Determine which chapters, themes and styles you already know and what you need to study for your upcoming essay, midterm, or final exam. Take the free quiz now!

Why does Maurice need to suppress his memories of his school days which are triggered by seeing the abacus in the principal's office? (from Interlude: The Threatened Animal)

He knows he needs to focus on the present and manage the sticky situation at hand.

He knows the memories might make him uncontrollably angry.

He is afraid that thinking about the past might cause him to become aroused in the principal's office.

He has discounted his school days as a waste of time and does not want to dwell on them.

When speaking of the coming war in Germany in 1939, to what does the metaphor, "the bellicose infant in the crib" (29) refer? (from Part 1: Before the Wall Came Down)

Those people ready and waiting for Germany to demonstrate her power and usurp control of other countries.

People who make a great deal of political noise.

The people who complained about all the changes the Nazis were making in Germany.

The noise from all the hungry babies because food was becoming scarce.

Maurice's description of Theo "tapping the the tip of his index finger against his thumb rapidly, like a woodpecker attacking an oak tree" (296) is an example of which literary device? (from Part 3: Other People's Stories)

A metaphor.

An allusion.

A simile.

Personification.

What does Boyne mean when he writes that Maurice was like "the work of a mediocre painter, [that] might look good on an initial viewing but would eventually reveal itself to be holding little substance beneath the brushstrokes" (101)? (from Interlude: The Swallow's Nest)

Maurice pretended to know what he was doing, but he really was not a good writer.

Maurice was a handsome man that attracted attention, but underneath his character was shallow.

Maurice's fancy facade and youth would soon fade and then he would no longer be able to use his sex appeal to get what he wanted.

Maurice put on a good show for everyone, but he only got published because he used other writers to get him what he wanted.

What is the significance of the Swallow's Nest in the novel? (from Interlude: The Swallow's Nest)

The home is situated high on a cliff overlooking everything in the area, just as Gore has reached great literary heights and is revered by many.

Male swallows choose a nest and then attract mates, much as Gore maintains his estate and attracts a flock of friends.

There are large flocks of swallows on the grounds so Gore named the estate in their honor.

Gore likes to function as a mentor and mother bird to young writers.