Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close Review Questions Chapters 1-3 Preview of Chapters 4-5

Short Answer Questions - What The? 1. What inventions of Oskar’s stand out to you so far? 2. What command does Oskar refuse in his first jujitsu class? 3. What French expression does Oskar repeatedly use? What does it mean? 4. Who is Gerald Thompson (from the first chapter)? 5. What logical reason does Oskar give for everyone in the world not being able to play Hamlet at the same time? 6. In the first chapter, why is the coffin that Oskar and his mother are burying empty? 7. How many messages from his father did Oskar Schell find on his family's answering machine? 8. How old is Oskar?

Short Answer Questions - Why I'm Not Where You Are (5/21/63) 1. To whom is the narrator of “Why I'm Not Where You Are” writing? 2. What is the first word that he loses? 3. What is the last word that he is able to speak? 4. What does the narrator of “Why I'm Not Where You Are” do when he runs out of pages while talking to someone? 5. What does he do with the pages that say "ha ha ha!"? How is this symbolic? 6. In what context do you imagine he first wrote “I’m not sure, but it’s late”? How does that statement apply to the woman’s question “Will you marry me?” (How could this statement be used symbolically?) 7. What does he use his old books for? 8. Where is he when he meets his future wife? 9. What is the last thing that the narrator “says” to the woman? 10. Who is the narrator of “Why I'm Not Where You Are”? What is his name? And how does he connect to Oskar’s story? (There are clues to that in “What The?” and “Why I’m Not Where You Are”—there are a couple of details that match up.)

Short Answer Questions - Googolplex 1. On what gift to his mother does Oskar leave a coded form of his father's last message? 2. What question does Oskar ask his mother about Ron? 3. What is written on the envelope holding the key that Oskar finds? 4. What famous person writes Oskar Schell in “Googolplex”? And what does he send to Oskar, which Oskar can’t use? 5. What does Oskar invent that would go under pillows? 6. What is the first business (store) that Oskar consults about the key? 7. What is the second business (store) that Oskar consults regarding the key/envelope? 8. How long has it been since Oskar’s dad died? 9. What quest does Oskar want to embark on? 10. Who communicates with Oskar via notes he reads by binoculars? 11. Where does Oskar decide he wants to keep everything/everyone he loves?

Preview of Chapters 4-5 “My Feelings” Read the second line of the chapter and the last line of the chapter. To whom is the person writing? Who is the speaker? She will tell you about a series of letters she collected from various people: a Turkish prisoner, her grandfather, a prisoner that her uncle knows, her piano teacher, her aunt, her friend Mary, her grandmother. Again, note the communication motif. You will find connections to “Why I’m Not Where You Are”, Thomas’ story. “The Only Animal” As Oskar embarks on his quest, keep track of Blacks in your notebook. Just write the person’s first name and last name (Black) and a few details about them. Tonight you’ll meet Aaron Black and Abby Black. He will talk about the five boroughs of NYC: Manhattan, the Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn, and Staten Island. (See next slide.)

The Five Boroughs

Possible topics for Wednesday night’s homework Your unit schedule explains Wednesday night’s assignment expectations and options. Here are some possible topics (just to help you—feel free to deviate from this list!): Oskar’s coping methods Oskar’s ways of reacting to stress Oskar’s inventions Oskar’s and Thomas’ reactions to grief Oskar’s and Thomas’ isolation The communication motif (miscommunication, gaps in communication, trends of communication, needs met through communication…)