Amal Unbound

1. What does Miss Sadia mean when she says, “family comes first”? (2)

A) Amal should let Seema get ahead of her in class.

B) Family ties are more important than anything else.

C) Amal should give up Omar’s friendship.

D) Family duties are too demanding.

2. What does Amal want to be when she grows up? (short answer)

3. How are Hafsa and Amal different?

A) Hafsa plans to go to college.

B) Hafsa wants to marry Omar when she gets older.

C) Hafsa does not share Amal’s curiosity or interest in learning.

D) Hafsa enjoys reading poetry.

4. Who is Khan Sahib?

A) the owner of the local produce store

B) a worker in the sugarcane fields

C) Hafsa’s uncle

D) the powerful village landlord

5. Why does Amal have to meet Omar secretly?

A) Seema does not like Omar.

B) Omar worries that his friends will make fun of him if they see him with Amal.

C) It is inappropriate for older girls and boys to have close friendships in the Pakistani culture.

D) Amal is embarrassed to let Hafsa know Omar is her friend.

6. What does Omar bring to Amal?

A) books

B) his bicycle

C) oranges

D) a plate of sweet jalebis

7. Why are Amal’s parents sad when the new baby is born?

A) They had hoped for twins.

B) They wanted a boy.

C) They know Amal’s mother cannot have more children.

D) They will need more money to support the new baby.

8. Why must Amal stay home from school?

A) to teach her sisters to read

B) to learn to make roti

C) to give literacy lessons to other villagers

D) to help care for her family while her mother recovers

9. What is Amal’s father’s attitude towards her education?

A) He is excited for Amal to go to college.

B) He thinks Amal has already learned all she needs to know.

C) He wants to help Amal get a scholarship to a better school, like Omar did.

D) He wishes Amal would teach her little sisters what she learns at school.

10. How does Miss Sadia help Amal?

A) She involves Amal in the poetry class.

B) She lets Amal attend school in the evenings.

C) She takes Amal to the literacy center.

D) She works out a system to let Amal learn at home.

11. Why are the villagers frightened of Jawad Sahib?

A) He is violent towards those who do not meet his demands.

B) He scares children with his ugly looks.

C) He owns large, vicious dogs.

D) He goes hunting on their land.

12. What fruit does Amal buy at Shaukat’s store? (short answer)

13. How does Amal feel when the stranger offers her money for the fruit?

 A) grateful to get paid

B) angry that the stranger thinks Amal can be bought

C) hopeful that he will notice her and give her a job

D) sad that he is not giving her as much money as she wanted

14. What does Amal’s father mean when he says that Amal has “no idea how the world works”? (56)

A) She does not know how to keep their household running.

B) She understands how the produce store works, but not the farm.

C) She has an academic education but is naïve about the day-to-day realities of life.

D) She does not know how to read.

15. Why does Amal’s mother say that they wanted a son?

A) A son would care for them when they are old and take care of the land.

B) A son could go to college and become a doctor.

C) A son could earn lots of money and help them retire early.

D) A son would be able to go into politics.

16. What is Jawad’s punishment for Amal’s disrespect?

A) to work at Shaukat’s produce store

B) to become a servant in his house

C) to work for his gardener

D) to teach his servants to read

17. Why did Amal’s father go into debt to Jawad?

A) to get money for Amal’s wedding

B) to borrow money to fix their roof

C) to make sure his father’s land stayed in the family

D) to pay off the medical bills for the new baby

18. Who asked Jawad to lessen Amal’s punishment?

A) Jawad’s mother

B) Shaukat, the produce store owner

C) Amal’s father

D) Miss Sadia

19. Which three adjectives best describe Jawad?

A) silent, calm, tired

B) foolish, amusing, relaxed

C) empathetic, kind, generous

D) arrogant, selfish, cruel

20. Amal becomes whose personal servant?

A) Ghulam

B) Mumtaz

C) Nasreen Baji

D) Bilal

21. What does Jawad assume about Amal?

A) She knows how to take care of a household.

B) She is smart and efficient.

C) She gets along well with others.

D) She is ignorant, lazy, and backward.

22. What do Nasreen Baji and Amal have in common?

A) They grew up in nearby villages.

B) They both love cats.

C) Both of them enjoy reading.

D) They appreciate beautiful paintings.

23. Why is Nabila angry with Amal?

A) Amal made Nabila drop the pot of food.

B) Amal replaced Nabila as Nasreen’s servant.

C) Nabila thinks Amal does not respect rules.

D) Amal has a chance to go home, but Nabila does not.

24. What do Bilal and Ghulam advise Amal to do after Nabila sabotages the ironing?

A) tell Jawad about Nabila

B) let Nabila care for Nasreen

C) stand up for herself and not be a victim

D) call home for her mother’s advice

25. What did Nasreen Baji love to do before she married Khan Sahib?

A) paint

B) sew

C) play the harp

D) garden

26. What does Amal secretly borrow from Jawad?

A) books

B) his files

C) chocolate biscuits

D) maps of the nearby villages

27. What helps Amal cope with her homesickness?

A) working hard for Nasreen

B) reading

C) playing with Chotu the cat

D) talking to Nabila

28. After reading his biography, why does Amal admire the poet Iqbal?

A) He wrote an impressive number of poems.

B) He could write well.

C) He achieved many different goals in his lifetime.

D) He worked hard to become governor.

29. What skills does Amal have that surprise Jawad?

A) She can read, write, and do math.

B) She is an expert at ironing.

C) She is an efficient cook.

D) She knows how to garden.

30. Whom does Amal teach to read? (short answer)

31. What does Amal mean when she says that “regret…was the sharpest knife there was”? (122)

A) She would gladly cut herself off from her memories.

B) She no longer wants to be a teacher.

C) She unhappily wishes she had made different choices.

D) She realizes she cannot marry Omar.

32. Mumtaz tells Amal she may spend the rest of her life working for the Khans. What does Mumtaz counsel Amal to do to make the best of the situation?

A) show respect for the Khan family

B) work hard to please Jawad

C) try to forget about her family

D) let go of her anger and get along with others

33. Why does Amal stand up to the police?

A) She does not want the servants to get in trouble with Jawad.

B) She is trying to protect Jawad.

C) She wants to tell the police the truth about the Khan family’s illegal activities.

D) She is tired of being mistreated.

34. What do Bilal and Nabila offer to do for Amal to thank her for helping with the police? (short answer)

35. How does Amal feel when first her father, then Mumtaz tell her that life is not fair?

A) She agrees there is no point in trying to change things.

B) She does not think that is a good reason to just accept things the way they are.

C) She wishes life were more fair.

D) She thinks wealthy people have unfair advantages.

36. How does visiting Lahore for the first time make Amal feel?

A) excited and energized

B) thoughtful and quiet

C) tired and bored

D) scared and anxious

37. How does Amal feel when her mother calls her a guest in their house?

A) pleased

B) hurt

C) thankful

D) deserving

38. Why does Amal find it bittersweet that Seema has a new dress for the wedding festivities?

A) She is angry because the money for a new dress could have been used to pay Jawad for her release.

B) Amal wishes she could have a new dress also.

C) The new dress signifies that Seema has taken Amal’s place as eldest daughter in the family.

D) Amal wanted Seema to wear her old dress to the wedding.

39. During her visit home, what does Amal save up to take back with her back to the Khan estate?

A) the steps to Hafsa’s dance routine

B) stacks of books from Omar

C) Fozia’s sweets

D) memories

40. What does Fozia want Amal to do for her?

A) tell Hafsa to give up her dream of going to college

B) take Nasreen a box of baked goods

C) ask Nasreen for more money to repair their produce store

D) see if Nasreen would reduce the amount of money that Jawad collects from Fozia’s family

41. What happened to the gold bangles that Amal’s mother always wears? (35)

A) Rabia took them outside and lost them while she was playing.

B) Amal’s mother sold them to try and earn money to buy Amal’s freedom.

C) Seema was allowed to wear them for the wedding.

D) Amal’s mother gave them to Amal.

42. Why doesn’t Nasreen visit her family in the village?

A) Her husband did not want Nasreen to visit them.

B) Nasreen had an argument with her cousin.

C) Her family no longer welcomes Nasreen in their home.

D) Nasreen has forgotten about them.

43. Why is it important to the Khans that there are students in the literacy center?

A) They believe everyone in the village should learn to read.

B) They need people to pay tuition at the literacy center to help cover its costs.

C) An empty literacy center might hurt Khan’s chances at reelection.

D) Without students, they would have to fire the teachers.

44. What do the bright colors of the literacy center symbolize to Amal?

A) joy

B) springtime

C) truth

D) hope

45. Who is Asif? (short answer)

46. Why does Asif assume that Amal is attending the literacy center?

A) He believes Amal is a spy sent by Jawad.

B) He thinks Amal wants to learn to read.

C) He believes Amal wants a job.

D) He thinks the other villagers sent Amal to check out the center.

47. Why won’t other villagers visit the literacy center?

A) It costs too much money.

B) They distrust teachers.

C) They are afraid of Jawad and the Khan family.

D) They already know how to read.

48. What is Amal excited to learn at the center?

A) how to read the English language

B) more information about the poet, Iqbal

C) more about Pakistan’s history and geography

D) how to use computers

49. What does Amal hope Fatima will gain from learning to read?

A) more opportunities for work in the Khan household

B) a chance to mentally feel free from her servitude

C) new friends

D) a job outside the Khan household

50. When Amal angrily shares the story of her servitude, what does Asif advise her to do?

A) keep being hopeful because change is coming

B) write her experiences down in a journal

C) tell the police the is being unfairly treated

D) run away from Jawad

51. When she’s walking in the garden, what does Amal overhear Khan and Jawad talking about?

A) their plans to move to Islamabad

B) Kahn’s schemes to steal the political election

C) Jawad’s confession that he had the diplomat’s son murdered

D) Nasreen’s praise of Amal’s household skills

52. Why does Nabila decide to help Amal bring Jawad to justice?

A) She decides that with Jawad gone, she could get a better position in the household.

B) She thinks the servants would be better treated if Jawad were away.

C) She believes then that she would be freed.

D) She learns that Jawad had her cousin killed.

53. Why does Asif say that Amal is brave?

A) She does not let others tell her what to do.

B) She does the right thing, even though she is scared.

C) She will not take no for an answer.

D) She confronts Jawad about the murders.

54. What does Amal learn when Jawad is arrested?

A) She discovers that Nasreen wants her to go to Islamabad.

B) She hears that the villagers are happy.

C) She realizes that everyone can make a difference in life.

D) She knows that life is not fair.

55. How does Amal gain her freedom?

A) Nasreen forgives her debt.

B) Asif buys out her remaining debt.

C) Amal’s parents collect enough money to free her.

D) The police set all the Khan household servants free.