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HOMELESS BIRD QUIZ

Name: _______________________________
Date: Tuesday August 18th

CHAPTERS 1-3

Read each statement below carefully. Place a T on the line if you think a statement is TRUE.
Place an F on the line if you think the statement is FALSE.

1. _______ Koly learned her parents were looking for a husband for her because the astrologer told
her it was about time for her to get married.

2. _______ Koly’s parents were not pleased when they found out that the wedding would take place
at Hari’s home, since they wanted to have a big party,

3. _______ Chandra told Koly her family allowed Hari to marry despite his illness because they
wanted the dowry’s money to take Hari to Varanasi.

4. _______ Mr. Lal gave Hari a small jar of water, which had been taken from the Ganges, as Hari
drank the water, he started suffering a new attack of coughing.

5. _______ Once Hari died, Sass and Sassur decided to bury his corpse at a cemetery next to the
Golden Temple.

CHAPTERS 4-6

Fill in the gaps with the corresponding information.

Back home, Mrs. Mehta gets meaner and meaner. She assigns Koly more chores and criticizes
everything she does. Hari's dad and sister are very nice, though. His dad teaches Koly how to (1)
__________ and gives her a book written by Tagore. After some time, they start to look for a husband
for Chandra and as they found him, they use Koly’s pension as Chandra’s (2)____________.
After (3)__________ leaves her home, Mr. Mehta gets depressed and dies suddenly one day, and
Hari's mother decides there's nothing left for her in that town. She wants to move to New Delhi to live
with her(4)______________, and she says she'll bring Koly along.They board the train for Delhi, but
when the train stops in (5) __________, a city known for its many widows and temples, Mrs. Mehta
(6)____________ Koly there. Koly is left totally alone.
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CHAPTERS 7-9

Read the following statements and identify the character they describe. Choose names from
the CHARACTER BANK below (there are more names than the ones you need). Write your
answers in the spaces provided.

CHARACTER BANK

Tanu - Hari - Mrs. Devi - Sassur - Koly - Sass - Mr. Das

1. When this person died, his thumbs were tied together to show that he could no longer work, and
his big toes were also tied together so that his ghost could not return. ………………..

2. When this character became a widow, her brass bowls, her best sari and her silver bangles were
all carried to the moneylender in the village to get some money to buy food. ………………..

3. This was a young person who also lived at Maa Kamala’s widow house and soon became Koly’s
close friend. ………………..

4. This character was very rich, spoke to everyone in a direct and open way and recommended Koly
with a maker of fine saris who was looking for women who were good at embroidering.
………………..

CHAPTERS 10-11

Read the statements below and the possible completions provided for each. Choose the best
option for each statement. Highlight or underline the correct answer.

1.Mrs. Devi paid for the widows’ house because…..

a) her mother had been a widow abandoned in Vrindavan.

b) her father had left money in his will for a widows’ house to help out people like his
mom.
c) she wanted to use her money doing something to help the ones who were in need.

2.Koly lied to Maa Kamala because she wanted…

a) to spend time with Mala in her house.

b) to go to the river to have a walk with Raji.
c) to go to the movies with Tanu.
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3. Koly asked Raji to wait for her to decide about marrying him because…

a) she needed time to think about the life she was giving up.
b) she was saving money to prepare her dowry.
c) she wanted Raji to finish the farm house he was building for them.

4.Mala was fired by Mr. Das because …

a) he discovered she had stolen the bridal veil.

b) he realized she had stolen a skein of gold thread.
c) he was tired of her constant complaints and late arrivals.

5. When Mrs Devi knew Koly was getting married, the lady…

a) asked Mr. Das to give Koly a sari as a wedding present.

b) gave Koly some money for her dowry.
c) asked Mr. Das to give Koly some muslim to embroider a sari for her.

Reflection Question:

How does the title of the novel HOMELESS BIRD relate to Koly’s story?

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