As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow: Full-Book Quiz (20 Questions)
Before You Begin
This quiz covers the entire story, from the epigraph to the epilogue. Questions focus on plot sequence, character motivations, key symbols, and themes. Use the answer key at the bottom to check your work.
If you need to refresh your memory, visit the main book page, browse questions and answers, or read the ending explained.
Section 1: Plot and Sequence (8 questions)
1. (Multiple choice)
What event directly causes Salama to hallucinate Khawf for the first time?
- A. The bombing that kills her mother and scars her hands
- B. Layla being shot by a sniper
- C. Ahmad’s death in the hospital
- D. The chemical attack on Karam el‑Zeitoun
2. (Short answer)
What object does Salama trade to the smuggler Am to secure a spot for Kenan on the boat?
3. (Multiple choice)
In what order do these key deaths occur?
- A. Layla is shot, Baba dies in prison, Hamza is captured
- B. Baba dies in prison, Layla is shot, Hamza is captured
- C. Hamza is captured, Layla is shot, Baba dies in prison
- D. Layla is shot, Hamza is captured, Baba dies in prison
4. (Multiple choice)
Where does the novel’s wedding between Salama and Kenan take place?
- A. At Layla’s apartment
- B. In the ruined old home of Salama’s family
- C. At the hospital, officiated by Dr. Ziad
- D. On the boat before they leave Syria
5. (Short answer)
What news does Dr. Ziad give Salama in Chapter 19 that confirms Hamza is still alive?
6. (Multiple choice)
Which weapon is used in the chemical attack that floods the hospital?
- A. Chlorine and mustard gas
- B. Sarin and chlorine
- C. Agent Orange
- D. VX nerve agent
7. (Short answer)
What object does Kenan give Salama that he has been carrying for a week before he proposes?
8. (Multiple choice)
At the end of the novel, where do Salama and Kenan settle?
- A. Berlin, Germany
- B. Toronto, Canada
- C. Rome, Italy
- D. Stockholm, Sweden
Section 2: Character Motivation (5 questions)
9. (Multiple choice)
Why does Layla insist on leaving Syria after the sniper attack in October?
- A. She no longer believes the revolution can succeed
- B. She is terrified for her unborn child and herself
- C. She wants to join her family in Europe
- D. She has lost her passion for painting
10. (Short answer)
What is Kenan’s primary reason for staying in Syria while others flee?
11. (Multiple choice)
Why does Salama initially refuse to sell the family gold to pay the smuggler?
- A. She wants to keep it as a memento of her mother
- B. She is too proud to beg for help
- C. She hopes to save it for a better escape plan
- D. The gold has gone missing
12. (Multiple choice)
What motivates Dr. Ziad to keep working at the hospital despite the danger?
- A. He is trapped and cannot leave
- B. He believes in healing as an act of resistance
- C. He is paid extremely well
- D. He wants to document the war for history
13. (Short answer)
Why does Salama hallucinate Layla as being alive long after her death?
Section 3: Theme and Symbol (4 questions)
14. (Multiple choice)
What does the lemon tree most clearly symbolize in the novel?
- A. The bitterness of exile
- B. Hope, continuity, and resilience
- C. The sourness of memory
- D. The wealth of the Syrian countryside
15. (Multiple choice)
The color blue, as seen in Layla’s painting, represents:
- A. Sadness and loss
- B. The sea that refugees must cross
- C. A lost dream of peace and beauty
- D. The sky of a free Syria
16. (Short answer)
What does the character Khawf personify in Salama’s psyche?
17. (Multiple choice)
The “might life” fantasy that Kenan and Salama build together serves what purpose?
- A. It helps them avoid their present suffering
- B. It keeps their hope alive in the face of war
- C. It is a way to criticize the revolution
- D. It distracts them from their guilt
Section 4: Synthesis (3 questions)
18. (Multiple choice)
How does the epigraph from Nizar Qabbani connect to the novel’s ending?
- A. It predicts that Layla’s baby will survive
- B. It reinforces that Syrian life and hope continue through new generations
- C. It suggests lemons are a cure for trauma
- D. It foreshadows the lemon tree that grows in Toronto
19. (Short answer)
In what way does Salama’s character arc illustrate the theme that “physical escape does not mean inner survival”?
20. (Multiple choice)
Which real historical event is referenced in the novel and mentioned in the Author’s Note?
- A. The 2011 Daraa protests
- B. The murder of Ghiath Matar
- C. The fall of the Ottoman Empire
- D. The 1982 Hama massacre (mentioned as part of Kenan’s family history, but not the main reference)
Answer Key
1. A – The bombing that kills her mother triggers the head injury; Khawf appears for the first time in the hospital afterwards (outline chapter 2).
2. A Panadol tablet and a ring – Salama trades these items to Am in Chapter 20 (outline ch. 20).
3. C – Hamza is captured first, then Layla is shot by a sniper, and later Dr. Ziad tells Salama that Baba has died in prison (outline ch. 2, ch. 18, ch. 14).
4. C – The wedding is held at the hospital, officiated by Dr. Ziad with siblings present (outline ch. 27).
5. Hamza is alive in Sednaya Prison – Dr. Ziad reveals this in Chapter 19 (outline ch. 19).
6. B – Sarin and chlorine are used in the chemical attack (outline ch. 20–21).
7. His mother’s ring – Kenan proposes with a ring he has carried for a week (outline ch. 26).
8. B – They live in Toronto, Canada, four months after leaving Berlin (outline epilogue).
9. B – Layla becomes adamant about leaving after she is nearly killed by a sniper while pregnant (outline ch. 13, evidence ch. 14).
10. He wants to document the revolution as a form of resistance – Kenan repeatedly states that his camera is his weapon (outline ch. 8, ch. 16).
11. B – Salama withholds the gold out of pride; she does not want to beg (outline ch. 10).
12. B – Dr. Ziad believes healing is a form of resistance and continues despite the danger (implied throughout; outline ch. 35 refers to building underground hospitals).
13. Because of severe trauma and PTSD – Salama represses the memory of Layla’s sniper death and creates a hallucination that keeps Layla present (outline ch. 29).
14. B – The lemon tree symbolises continuity, hope, and resilience, as stated in the epigraph and recurring motif (outline epigraph, ch. 8, epilogue).
15. C – The unique blue in Layla’s painting represents a peaceful dream that Salama longs to see; she associates it with hope and beauty (evidence ch. 16).
16. Fear and trauma – Khawf is Salama’s personified fear, born from her head injury and PTSD (outline ch. 2, ch. 26).
17. B – The “might life” fantasy keeps their hope alive despite the horrors around them (outline ch. 30, ch. 31).
18. B – The epigraph says “Every lemon will bring forth a child and the lemons will never die out”; the epilogue shows a lemon seedling growing, symbolising new life and enduring hope across generations.
19. Salama negotiates and pays for escape, but she still suffers from survivor’s guilt and trauma; inner healing only begins when she accepts Layla’s death and opens up to Kenan (outline ch. 12, ch. 29, epilogue).
20. B – The murder of Ghiath Matar, a real activist who gave flowers to soldiers, is referenced in the novel and confirmed in the Author’s Note (outline ch. 22, Author’s Note).