The Book of Unknown Americans

What is the main theme of the text?

• The struggles of fitting in as an immigrant

• The importance of family bonds

• The impact of political conflict on personal lives

• The nostalgia for one's home country.

Why did the narrator's parents leave Panama?

• They wanted a better life in the United States

• They were forced to leave due to the political situation

• They missed their family and wanted to visit them

• They wanted to explore other countries

How did the narrator feel about their identity?

• They identified more as an American.

• They strongly identified as Panamanian.

• They were confused and unsure of their identity.

• They didn't care about their cultural background.

How do the characters’ thoughts about and reactions to the setting relate to the themes
of the selection?

The novel's title, The Book of Unknown Americans, emphasizes the idea in the excerpt that the characters struggle to...

• Find out about their past.

• Locate their other family members.

• Return to their former home.

• Fit in with their new culture.

Which sentence best fits the theme found in The Book of Unknown Americans?

• Life as an immigrant is easy.

• Home can only be one place.

• Adjusting to life as an immigrant is a difficult and lengthy process.

• Most immigrants choose to let go of their roots and embrace being American.

The novel’s title, The Book of Unknown Americans, emphasizes the idea in the excerpt that the characters struggle to

• find out about their past

• locate their other family members

• fit in with their new culture

• return to their former home

As used in paragraph 25, what does the word recruit mean?

• to hire

• to strengthen

• to enlist

• to renew

Which is a possible theme of The Book of Unknown Americans?

• Cultural Identity

• People cannot feel that they belong if they are not accepted.

• People from other countries who move here dislike America once they live there for a while.

• Mistakes are ok as long as you learn from them.

Which happened FIRST in the telling of the story, The Book of Unknown Americans?

• The family members became American citizens.

• The narrator explains the story of when his family left Panama.

• The narrator’s father takes them to the beach to remember Panama.

• The narrator’s father finds out how his high school classmates feel about him leaving Panama.