Practice Questions for The Devil's Arithmetic by Jane Yolen

Practice Q’s for The Devil’s Arithmetic by Jane Yolen

1       What happens to the people who enter Lilith’s Cave?  They are killed.

2       Who are “zugangi”?  New arrivals to the camp.

3       What is Hannah unable to do?  Remember.

4       What is unusual about the blokova’s hand?  She is missing two fingers.

5       Why does the blokova have only three fingers?  She was punished for not controlling the prisoners.

6       Where do the children hide?  In the midden.

7       What is the midden?  A heap of all the waste from the camp.

8       What was “the plan”?  To escape from the camp.

9       Who is Shmuel’s fiancée?  Fayge.

1   What is the occasion when Shmuel, Chaya and the rest of the family are all captured?  A wedding.

1   Which of Blokova’s belongings was left outside the door?  Her shoes.

1   Who sent Reuven to his death?  Commandant Breuer.

1   What did it mean to be “chosen”?  To be chosen for death.

1   What kind of tattoo does Hannah’s Grandpa Will have on his left arm?  A number from the concentration camp.

1   What holiday is Hannah’s family celebrating at the beginning of the book?  Passover.

1   What is the Passover meal called?  The Seder.

1   When Hannah goes into the past, what country is she in?  Poland.

1   What is the event that makes Hannah unable to remember anything of her past?  The shaving of her hair.

1   Who is the guest that those gathered around the Passover Seder are expecting?  Elijah.

2   What is eaten at the Passover Seder that tastes unpleasant?  Bitter herbs.

2   How many Jews had been killed by the Nazis?  Six million.

2   Who does Wolfe turn out to be?  Hannah’s Grandpa Will.

2   Why is Hannah’s grandfather so disturbed when he sees images of the Holocaust?  He was forced to cooperate with the Nazis just to survive.

2   Who says “His name was Wolfe. Wolfe! And the irony of it was that he was as gentle as a lamb”? Aunt Eve.

2   Why did many Jews change their names when they came to America?  To help them forget the painful memories.

2   How are the Jews transported to the camp?  On cattle cars.

2   What happened to Chaya’s parents?  They died of illness.

2   Who does Hannah becomes when transported to the past?  Chaya Abramowitz.

2   Where does Hannah’s family live in the USA?  New Rochelle.

3   Where in the camp does Chaya meet Rivka?  In the kitchen.

3   What advice does Rivka give about her bowl?  Keep it with you always.

3   Which two friends of Chaya’s die on the way to the concentration camp?  Rachel and Yente.

3   What is Aunt Eva’s number” J18202.

3   Who is Aunt Eva in the story?  Rivka.

3   What is Hannah’s last name?  Stern.

3   What language is spoken among the Jews in Poland?  Yiddish.

3   Why is Hannah alarmed when tricks and officers stop them on the way to the wedding?  She knows what will happen to them because she is from the future.

3  What disease is Chaya supposedly recovering from?  Cholera.

3   Who takes care of Chaya?  Gitl and her brother Shmuel.

4   What happens to Fayge when Shmuel is shot for trying to escape?  She loses the will to live.

4   What is Hannah’s little brother worried about on the drive to the Passover Seder?  He will have to ask the questions for the first time and he doesn’t want to make any mistakes.

4   What did it mean if your tattoo in the camp began with “G”?  This person was a Greek.

4   What advice did Rivka give about surviving?  Do not stand close to someone who was Greek, don’t move too slowly, don’t use the word death or killed.

4   Who escaped from the camp? Yitzchak.

4   Who is Hannah’s friend in New Rochelle?  Rosemary.

4   What holiday are Hannah’s classmates all celebrating instead of Passover? Easter with jelly beans.

4   What do they drink at the Seder?  The adults have wine, but the children have watered down wine.

4   What is Hannah’s brother’s name?  Aaron.

4   Why does Hannah not see Shmuel after they get to the camp?  The men and women are separated.

5   What is Hannah’s Jewish name?  Chaya.

5   Who was Hannah named after?  A girl named Chaya who took Aunt Eva’s place when she was supposed to die.

5   What does the name Chaya mean in Yiddish?  Life.

5   Who says, “We are all monsters...Because we are letting it happen.”?  Hannah/Chaya.