Why does Valli stand up on the seat? What does she see now?

What made Mr Keesing allow Anne to talk in class?

Chubukov says of Natalya: “... as if she won’t consent! She’s in love; egad, she’s like a lovesick cat...” Would you agree? Find reasons for your answer.

Are there people like Lencho in the real world? What kind of a person would you say he is? You may select appropriate words from the box to answer the question.

   greedy            naive                   stupid                ungrateful 
   selfish            comical               unquestioning

Why didn’t Valli want to make friends with the elderly woman?

Did Lencho try to find out who had sent the money to him? Why/Why not?

What ideals does Nelson Mandela set for the future of South Africa?

Anne says teachers are most unpredictable. Is Mr Keesing unpredictable? How?

How does Mandela describe the systems of government in his country

(i) in the first decade, and
(ii) in the final decade of the twentieth century?

Was Lencho surprised to find a letter for him with money in it?

Do you think Mr Keesing was a strict teacher?

When her son dies, Kisa Gotami goes from house to house. What does she ask for? Does she get it? Why not?

Do you think Mr Keesing was a strict teacher?

Who does Lencho have complete faith in? Which sentences in the story tell you this?

How does Anne feel about her father, her grandmother, Mrs Kuperus and Mr Keesing? What do these tell you about her?

Why do you think Kisa Gotami understood this only the second time? In what way did the Buddha change her understanding?

What made Mr Keesing allow Anne to talk in class?

Why does he go to Basra? How long does he wait there, and why?

What did Valli see on her way that made her laugh?

What did the military generals do ? How did their attitude change and why?

What were Lencho’s feelings when the hail stopped?