The Other Side of the Sky

Multiple Choice and Long Answer questions create ideal opportunities for whole-text review, unit exam, or summative assessments.

Multiple Choice

1. In Chapter 1, Ahmedi describes the sense of exhilaration she feels while riding The Gondola. Which of the following is not one of the reasons she cites for feeling this thrill?

A) The feeling of weightlessness

B) The quick speed of the ride

C) The people around her, cheering and screaming

D) The way the ride changes direction suddenly

2. When she first moves to the US, Ahmedi is plagued by nightmares of what two deceased relatives urging her to come be with them, as she describes in Chapter 1?

A) Her mother and father

B) Her father and grandfather

C) Her grandfather and grandmother

D) Her mother and grandmother

3. In Ahmedi’s description of her ancestral village of Ghazni, it becomes clear that, over the last thousand years, global culture has transformed. Which of the following best describes the nature of that transformation?

A) Afghanistan is now viewed as a culturally “backwards” nation where refugees are from, whereas it was once known as a sophisticated epicenter of world civilization.

B) Afghanistan is now viewed as economically rigid with only a few acceptable types of industry, whereas it once was a hub for numerous types of industry.

C) Afghanistan is now viewed as an anarchical nation, whereas it once had a centralized state of government. 

D) Afghanistan is now viewed as a secular nation, whereas it was once seen a nation of religious, pious citizens who practiced either Islam or Christianity.

4. Which of the following is primarily responsible for interesting Ahmedi in a world beyond the confines of Afghanistan?

A) The German fashion industry

B) The education she receives in Kabul

C) Islamic fables about the wider world

D) A telescope, given to her by her father

5. After her surgery in Germany, Ahmedi feels a sense of separation from her family in Afghanistan when she reunites with them. What moment in Chapter 7 is symbolic of Ahmedi opening herself up to her family again and allowing their love back into her life?

A) She resumes work at her old station—as a button replacer—in her father’s tailoring business.

B) She joins her mother in the Islamic prayer ritual, 5 times each day.

C) She tells her parents that she will go to see the local Imam, to get counsel on the sense of disconnection she’s been feeling.

D) She tells her father that she is putting away her German clothes—she will only dress as an Afghan girl again.

6. Ahmedi’s family are an ethnic group that are especially detested by the Taliban. What is that ethnicity?

A) Pashtun

B) Turkmens

C) Baloch

D) Hazara

7. When Ahmedi reaches her uncle’s house in Chapter 8, after her home is bombed and her father and sisters are killed, Ahmedi cannot help but unleash her sobbing, mournful wails. How do the people around her respond?

A) Someone slaps her and tells her she needs to control herself, otherwise she will disturb her mother.

B) Her mother takes her hands and joins her in her crying.

C) The family circles around her and begins saying a traditional Islamic prayer for those grieving.

D) She is ignored by all those around her—they do not know how to respond to such a deep, overwhelming grief.

8. Many years after Ahmedi worked as a domestic worker in Quetta, she was reminded of her experience there when viewing what popular American movie?

A) Maid in Manhattan

B) Girl with a Pear Earring

C) Cinderella

D) The Servant

9. On their way to the US Embassy in Islamabad in Chapter 13, Ahmedi and her mother are stopped by two Pakistani motorcycle policemen. Why do the men stop them?

A) They want to flirt with Ahmedi and her mother.

B) They want Ahmedi and her mother to turn over all their money to them.

C) They want to escort Ahmedi and her mother to the embassy.

D) They notice that Ahmedi and her mother are being followed by the Taliban, and they want to warn them to be careful.

10. Though Ahmedi cannot immediately begin school when she arrives in America, she enrolls in what type of educational classes?

A) Driver’s education

B) A pottery class

C) An American history class

D) An English ESL course

11. In Chapters 14-15, Ahmedi shows that security is not necessarily straightforward—it is multi-faceted. Which of the following statements best describes how she shows this?

A) Ahmedi’s mother slowly begins to unravel health-wise, thus creating new security challenges when Ahmedi arrives to the US.

B) Ahmedi was once friendly with the Taliban, but now they are enemies—sometimes a friendship can go from “secure” to dangerous.

C) Though Ahmedi and her mother manage to escape the dangers of war and repression in Afghanistan, they are still unsafe and vulnerable in the US.

D) Ahmedi misses Afghanistan, even though it is dangerous; sometimes “familiarity” can be equated with “security,” even when rationally one knows better.

12. Before Alyce began helping Ahmedi and her mother by driving them to and from the grocery store and to doctors’ appointments, what unsafe means would Ahmedi and her mother use to get around?

A) Seedy taxi drivers

B) A bicycle with a broken wheel

C) Hitchhiking

D) An unofficial “bus” ran by a local gang

13. When Ahmedi first entered the US school system, her American classmates would ignore her. Which of the following best explains why, at that time, Ahmedi said it felt good to be anonymous?

A) Because she was ashamed of her growing body, that it might attract too much attention from boys

B) Because she was tired of being under the watchful eye of so many social workers, relief workers, etc.

C) Because she wanted the opportunity to observe her classmates unnoticed

D) Because she was afraid that her classmates would judge or mock her for being “different” so, by comparison, being ignored was easier

14. In driver’s education at school Ahmedi reports that, while it taught her a lot about certain subjects related to driving, it did not teach her how to actually drive. What two subjects did she say it taught her most about?

A) Different types of licenses and where the DMV is located in Chicago

B) What kind of car is best and if a luxury vehicle is worth the expense

C) Traffic laws and the dangers of driving under the influence of drugs/alcohol

D) If leather seats are better than fabric ones and why women shouldn’t drive stick shift

15. As Ahmedi writes in the final chapter of the book, which of the following words best describes the mental state of Ahmedi’s mother?

A) Joyful

B) Blank

C) Angry

D) Fearful

Long Answer

Compose a response of 2-3 sentences, incorporating textual details to support your response.

1. What are the pivotal moments when high-heeled shoes appear in the book and what do they symbolize in The Other Sky?

2. In the later chapters of the book when Ahmedi is settling into the US, although she is older and wiser, she is finally able to be a child. What does this assertion mean? In your answer, explain the character of Alyce and how she has a hand in this.