Q.1
"I do not have many memories of my very early childhood, apart from the obvious ones, of course. You know, my windswept, bewildered parents in their dusty Indian village garb standing in the open doorway of a 747, blinking back tears of gratitude and heartbreak as the fog cleared to reveal the sign they had been waiting for, dreaming of, the sign planted in tarmac and emblazoned in triumphant hues of red, blue and white, the sign that said simply, WELCOME TO BRITAIN." Which word choices are clues that the reader should perhaps take this recollection with a pinch of salt?
  • Gratitude, heartbreak, dreaming
  • Early, planted, simply
  • Obvious, of course, you know
  • Childhood, parents, village
Q.2
"I scuttled after papa along the single road, bordered with nicotine-tipped spikey grass, the main artery which bisected the village. A row of terraced houses clustered around the crossroads, uneven teeth which spread into a gap-toothed smile as the houses gradually became bigger and grander as the road wandered south, undulating into a gentle hill and finally merging into many miles of flat green fields, stretching as far as the eye could see." Which of the following literary devices is used here?
  • Alliteration
  • Personification
  • Metaphor
  • All of the above
Q.3
"I hesitated as we passed the first 'entry' as we called them; they always spooked me, these endless echoing corridors, smelling of mildew whose sides always seemed to weep and covered you with shiny scales and bullet black slugs the size of a fingernail if you bumped against them, running from daylight through night and then back into the safety of the yard." Which senses are evoked in this description of the entry?
  • Sight, smell and hearing
  • Hearing, taste and touch
  • Smell, hearing and taste
  • Sight, touch, smell and hearing
Q.4
"The whole room seemed to be sighing, I could make out mama's soft weeping, it was muffled." Which literary device is evident in this sentence?
  • Simile
  • Personification
  • Allegory
  • Rhyme
Q.5
"Then I found myself looking up into my mama's face, except it was darker and more wrinkled and the eyes were rheumy and mischievous, but it was mama's face alright, and suddenly I was in the middle of a soft warm pillow which smelt of cardamom and sweet sharp sweat, and there was hot breath whispering in my ear, endearments in Punjabi which needed no translation, and the tears I was praying would come to prove I was a dutiful granddaughter, came spilling out with no effort at all." What does the reference to "effort" imply?
  • Meena is feeling tired after all of the work she has been expected to do in preparation for Nanima's visit
  • Meena is dreading her grandmother's visit because of the extra work involved
  • Meena is used to performing the emotions other people expect her to feel
  • All of the above
Q.6
"I could make out another crowd of people pushing their way through the fairground punters, struggling against the flow and press of bodies. This crocodile of renegades moved slowly, I saw the flash of a jewelled sandal picking its way through the mud, a glittering nose ring caught by the flare of a neon bulb, a streak of vermilion silk exposed by a winter coat whipped up by the night air, and knew the rest of our guests had arrived." What is being contrasted here?
  • The conventionally dressed Aunties and Uncles with the colourful crowd heading towards the fairground
  • The excitable crowd headed towards the fair with the sombreness of the Aunties and Uncles
  • The brilliantly dressed Aunties with their mundane surroundings
  • The frightened crowd of fair-goers with the calm, collected Aunties and Uncles
Q.7
"I enjoyed her anger, the snapping eyes, the shrieking voice, the glimpse of monster beneath the mother; it was one of the times I felt we understood each other perfectly." Which of these words are examples of onomatopoeia?
  • Enjoyed, glimpse
  • Snapping, shrieking
  • Monster, mother
  • Eyes, voice
Q.8
"Anita's tone was quietly threatening, all of us recognised it and all of us unconsciously stood to attention." What effect is created by the use of the phrase, "stood to attention"?
  • The phrase emphasises Anita's kindness
  • The phrase emphasises Anita's leadership qualities
  • The phrase emphasises Anita's courage
  • The phrase emphasises Anita's intelligence
Q.9
"And it was only then I noticed how much weight mama had lost, her usually moon-shaped face was all angles and shadows, she and papa had saddlebags of dark under their eyes, papa's rosy complexion had given way to a sallow tinge, as if he had been indoors for too long." Which of the following words implies that Meena's mama and papa feel the weight of worry as a burden?
  • Weight
  • Sallow
  • Tinge
  • Saddlebags
Q.10
Which of the following expresses the distance Meena feels from herself as she gives her evidence to the police officers investigating Tracey's accident?
  • "They opened their notebooks"
  • "They turned to a page of notes"
  • "They began their enquiries"
  • "I gradually drifted far away until I was outside my body, watching a fat brown girl chew her lip and talk in faltering sentences"
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