Question Library

The narrator and her children sat under the mango tree when the room became stuffy. This was after Omar had come home with news of him passing his examinations. They went outside to sit while they waited for their father's return. This can be found on page 6 of the novel where Jamila, one of the narrator's children, says: "Let's go outside and sit under the mango tree in the courtyard".

clothe - /kləʊð/ cloth - /klɒ\theta/ smooth - /smuːð/ good - /ɡʊd/ thesis - /ˈ\thetaiː.sɪs/

Talle is the character who earned the nickname "the quiet one" because of his introverted nature. We can find this on page 21 of the novel where he was described as a quiet person who never engaged in a fight with anyone.

urn - /ɜːn/ bed - /bed/ corn - /kɔːn/ hearse - /hɜːs/ calm - /ka:m/

Dr Kabir Muhammed collected one hundred thousand Naira from Salma to cover up her EMAL offence. This is after she negotiated it down from two hundred thousand Naira. This can be found on page 61 of the novel.

Bint describes her Social Studies teacher as meddlesome as she narrates how she took on her Social Studies teacher who thinks he knows "a little bit about every subject under the sun". This can be found on page 1 of the novel.

In mining, "tunnels" are pathways that connect different parts of a mine.

The people working in the mines are specifically referred to as "miners," not "toilers" or "workers."

The "coal face" refers to the exposed surface of coal where mining takes place.

"The quiet one" was named Talle on account of the fact that his mother died shortly after his birth. This can be found on page 21 of the novel.

Habib Lawal's title in the House of Assembly is "Speaker". This can be found on page 58 of the novel where Salma examines his office as she walks into it and reads the name on his desk: "HABIB LAWAL, SPEAKER".

Salma, at first, did not like the composition of her roommates. Her roommates: Ngozi, Tomiwa and Ada all came from different parts of the country. She actually liked the "most coveted" and "famous" Queen Amina Hall but did not take a liking to her roommates. This can be found on page 31 of the novel.

Notes of Salvation is a euphemism for the cheat notes that Kola passed to Salma during the examination. It helps to reduce the unpleasantness of what the cheat notes represent.

The acronym "EMEC" means "Examination Malpractice and Ethics Committee". We can find this on page 59 of the novel. It is in front of this committee that Selma and Kola had to appear for the Committee to decide their punishment for committing examination malpractice.

"Bare" describes the exposed or uncovered coal surface. Other options do not fit the description appropriately.