The Princess and the Goblin

Multiple Choice and Long Answer questions create ideal opportunities for whole-book review, unit exam, or summative assessments.

Multiple Choice

1. What happens when Irene takes Curdie to meet Grandmother?

A) Grandmother gives Curdie a gift.

B) Grandmother does not allow Irene to bring Curdie in.

C) Curdie cannot see Grandmother.

D) Curdie thanks Grandmother for protecting Irene.

2. Identify the correct series of events:

A) Curdie is kidnapped by the goblins – Curdie is captured by the guards – Curdie is led by the magical thread

B) Curdie is captured by the guards – Curdie is kidnapped by the goblins – Curdie is led by the magical thread

C) Curdie is led by the magical thread – Curdie is kidnapped by the goblins – Curdie is captured by the guards

D) Curdie is kidnapped by the goblins – Curdie is led by the magical thread – Curdie is captured by the guards

3. Which of Grandmother’s magical objects most closely symbolizes her love for Irene?

A) Her moon-lamp

B) Her pigeons

C) Her silver bath

D) Her rose fire

4. In which instance was Irene’s faith in her grandmother tested?

A) When she is lost on the mountainside with Lootie

B) When the goblins attack the farmhouse

C) When she follows the thread to Curdie in the caverns

D) When Curdie does not believe her claims

5. Which reason best describes why the goblins dislike humans?

A) The goblins think that humans are weak.

B) The goblins think that humans stole their land.

C) The goblins think that humans betrayed them.

D) The goblins think that humans are ugly.

6. Which of the following pairs of adjectives best describe the King-Papa?

A) Strict and harsh

B) Humorous and easygoing

C) Loving and fair

D) Rude and distrustful

7. How does Curdie react when Irene tells him about Grandmother?

A) He is skeptical and irritated.

B) He is curious and skeptical.

C) He is amazed and curious.

D) He is amazed and excited.

8. Which of the following traits is not princess-like?

A) Honesty

B) Superiority

C) Bravery

D) Kindness

9. Which literary technique is the following an example of: “The dew lay in round drops upon the leaves, and hung like tiny diamond ear-rings from the blades of grass about her path.” (Chapter 20)

A) Irony

B) Symbolism

C) Allusion

D) Simile

10. What is different about Curdie at the beginning of the story compared to its conclusion?

A) He goes from being afraid of the goblins to fearless.

B) He goes from disbelieving in Grandmother to believing in her.

C) He goes from disliking the goblins to liking them.

D) He goes from disliking Irene to loving her.

11. What have the goblin creatures begun to resemble?

A) Goblins

B) Bears

C) Humans

D) Rats

12. What does Irene’s having “eyes like two bits of night sky, each with a star dissolved in the blue” suggest about her? (Chapter 1)

A) She is born of the stars like her grandmother.

B) She is destined to become a god one day.

C) She is able to use the same powers as her grandmother.

D) She is related to someone with blue eyes.

13. What effect does authorial intrusion (the act of inserting oneself into the story one is writing) have on the story?

A) It makes it more challenging to read.

B) It makes the author into a character.

C) It makes the reader question the narrator.

D) It makes the plot less confusing.

14. What can be inferred about Grandmother based on her magical abilities, age, and youthful appearance?

A) She is some sort of witch.

B) She is related to the goblins.

C) She is able to control Irene’s actions.

D) She is some sort of goddess.

15. How does Curdie save the farmhouse from the goblins?

A) By singing and whacking their heads

B) By stomping on their feet and flooding them out

C) By singing and stomping on their feet

D) By singing and flooding them out

Long Answer

Compose a response of 2-3 sentences, incorporating text details to support your response.

1. What are the objects that Grandmother uses to perform her magic, and what purpose does each of them serve?

2. How do humans and goblins see each other in the beginning and throughout the novel? What changes about the relationship between goblins and humans after the attack and flood?

3. How does Irene change over the course of the novel, and what key events cause these changes?