Last Night at the Telegraph Club: Complete 20‑Question Quiz

About This Quiz

This 20‑question quiz covers the entire novel Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo. Questions are divided into four sections: Plot & Sequence (8 questions), Character Motivation (5 questions), Theme & Symbol (4 questions), and Synthesis (3 questions). Formats include multiple‑choice and short‑answer. The answer key with explanations follows all questions.

Part 1: Plot & Sequence (8 Questions)

1. What does Lily Hu secretly tear out of the newspaper at the Eastern Pearl restaurant?
A) A coupon for chop suey
B) An ad for the Telegraph Club featuring Tommy Andrews
C) A photo of Katharine Hepburn
D) An article about female pilots

2. At which drugstore does Lily discover the pulp novel Strange Season?
A) Walgreens
B) Thrifty Drug Store
C) Rexall
D) Macy’s pharmacy

3. During the Spook‑A‑Rama dance, what do Lily and Kath decide to do together?
A) Dance the jitterbug
B) Leave the gym and walk to Aquatic Park
C) Get punch from the refreshment table
D) Join the committee

4. How does Lily obtain a fake ID to enter the Telegraph Club?
A) She buys it from a classmate
B) Kath gets it for her through a friend of Jean’s
C) She steals it from her father’s desk
D) She makes it herself in art class

5. On Lily’s first visit to the Telegraph Club (Chapter 20), which song does Tommy Andrews perform that transfixes Lily?
A) “Stormy Weather”
B) “Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered”
C) “I’ve Got You Under My Skin”
D) “Lili Marleen”

6. What prompts the police raid on the Telegraph Club in Chapter 38?
A) A fight breaks out inside
B) Tips that the bar recruits teenage girls into “debauchery”
C) Tommy Andrews is caught with illegal drugs
D) The club fails to pay its liquor license

7. After her mother confronts her about the Telegraph Club, where does Lily flee for refuge?
A) To the Eastern Pearl restaurant
B) To Aunt Judy’s house in Pasadena
C) To Lana Jackson’s apartment
D) To a church in Chinatown

8. In the epilogue, where do Lily and Kath reunite over a year after the novel’s main events?
A) At the Morrison Planetarium
B) At Vesuvio’s bar
C) At the Telegraph Club
D) At the Miss Chinatown pageant

Part 2: Character Motivation (5 Questions)

For questions 9–13, answer in one or two sentences based on evidence from the book.

9. Why does Lily begin collecting clippings of Katharine Hepburn in trousers, female pilots, and Tommy Andrews?
Short‑answer:

10. What drives Kath Miller’s ambition to become a pilot?
Short‑answer:

11. Why does Shirley Lum decide to enter the Miss Chinatown pageant?
Short‑answer:

12. What is Grace Hu’s primary fear when she learns Lily was at the Telegraph Club?
Short‑answer:

13. In the flashback chapter “Judy: Three and a Half Years Earlier,” what secret guilt does Judy Fong carry?
Short‑answer:

Part 3: Theme & Symbol (4 Questions)

14. After her first visit to the Telegraph Club, Kath describes the experience as “like you’ve been told about chocolate your entire life but you’ve never tried any, and then all of a sudden someone gives you an entire box.” What does the chocolate metaphor represent?
A) The sweetness of teenage romance
B) The overwhelming discovery of queer community and desire
C) The richness of Chinese food compared to American food
D) The addictive quality of nightclub performances

15. Lily keeps three secret items hidden in her bedroom: the Telegraph Club ad, a photo of Katharine Hepburn in trousers, and an article about female pilots. What do these objects collectively symbolize?
A) Her love of fashion and Hollywood
B) Her interest in aviation as a career
C) Her hidden attraction to women who defy gender norms
D) Her desire to travel outside Chinatown

16. Throughout the novel, rockets and space travel serve as a recurring symbol. What does this symbolize for Lily?
A) Her wish to escape the confines of family, gender, and racial expectations
B) Her fear of the atomic bomb and the Cold War
C) Her desire to become an astronomer
D) Her belief that life exists on other planets

17. In Chapter 40, Lily’s mother insists “There are no homosexuals in this family.” This statement most directly illustrates which theme?
A) The warmth of Chinese family bonds
B) The power of denial and erasure in maintaining family honor
C) The influence of McCarthyism on everyday life
D) The importance of keeping secrets from neighbors

Part 4: Synthesis (3 Questions)

For questions 18–20, answer in two to four sentences, drawing on the historical and social context of the novel.

18. How does the Lavender Scare (the persecution of gay people in the 1950s) shape the events of the Telegraph Club raid and its aftermath?

19. Compare Lily’s experience of being silenced by her family with Shirley’s experience of hiding her relationship with Calvin. What do both situations reveal about the pressures on Chinese American teenagers in the 1950s?

20. At the end of the novel, Lily goes to Pasadena with Aunt Judy, and later studies math at UCLA. How do her academic ambitions and her queer identity intersect as forms of defiance?

📋 Answer Key

1. B – Lily tears out the ad for the Telegraph Club that shows Tommy Andrews (see Chapter 1).
2. B – She discovers Strange Season at Thrifty Drug Store in Chapter 5.
3. B – They leave the school dance and walk through the fog to Aquatic Park (Chapter 14).
4. B – Kath obtains the fake ID through her friend Jean’s connection (Chapter 18).
5. B – Tommy performs “Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered” during Lily’s first visit (Chapter 20).
6. B – The police raid is triggered by tips about “recruiting” teenage girls, as reported in the newspaper (Chapter 39).
7. C – Lily escapes to Lana Jackson’s apartment after the confrontation with her mother (Chapter 42).
8. B – They meet at Vesuvio’s bar in North Beach (Epilogue).

9. Lily collects images of women who defy gender expectations because she is drawn to them and is trying to understand her own queer desire.
10. Kath dreams of flying because it gives her a sense of freedom and control, and she wants to escape the limits placed on women in the 1950s.
11. Shirley enters the pageant to gain status and attention within the Chinatown community, and because she fears losing her friendship with Lily as they prepare for college.
12. Grace fears that the scandal will damage her husband’s immigration status and bring shame upon the family, possibly leading to deportation.
13. Judy secretly feels guilty that she wanted to study mathematics instead of becoming a mother, and she still grieves a miscarriage she had the previous spring.

14. B – The chocolate metaphor captures the overwhelming joy and confusion of suddenly encountering a world where same‑sex desire is openly expressed.
15. C – The clippings symbolize Lily’s hidden attraction to women who are independent and gender‑nonconforming.
16. A – Rockets and space travel represent the possibility of escaping the narrow roles assigned to her as a Chinese American girl.
17. B – Grace’s refusal to acknowledge Lily’s identity illustrates the theme of erasure to preserve family honor in a homophobic society.

18. The Lavender Scare, an offshoot of McCarthyism, targeted gay people as “security risks.” The police raid on the Telegraph Club and the sensational newspaper article reflect this persecution. After the raid, Lily fears exposure, and the club’s closure shows how state‑sanctioned homophobia shattered a safe space.

19. Both Lily and Shirley must hide their romantic relationships because their families and community expect them to conform to heterosexual, traditional roles. Lily is sent away to Pasadena; Shirley hides her relationship with Calvin, whose Communist ties endanger Lily’s father. Their secrecy reveals how family loyalty and fear of scandal demanded silence about both queer identity and political dissent.

20. Lily’s pursuit of math and science—her dream of working at JPL—breaks gender and racial stereotypes. At the same time, she refuses to deny her love for Kath. By continuing her education and maintaining her queer identity, she defies both the racist assumption that Chinese girls are passive and the homophobic demand to hide. Her path forward combines intellectual ambition with emotional honesty.

Use this quiz to test your own understanding or to spark discussion with other readers.
For further exploration, check out the book summary, questions and answers, and ending explained.