Maame by Jessica George: Full-Book Quiz
Maame by Jessica George: Full-Book Quiz — 20 Questions to Test Your Reading (with Answer Key Below)
This quiz covers the entire arc of Maddie's story, from her caregiving routine in Thornton Heath to her new life in publishing and the inheritance that changes everything. Questions are grouped by type: plot and sequence, character motivation, theme and symbol, and synthesis. Try to answer without looking back at the book, then check your work against the key at the bottom.
Part 1: Plot and Sequence (Questions 1–8)
1. What event marks the moment Maddie calls “The Beginning”?
A) Her mother leaves for Ghana
B) Her father gets lost on Spar Lane
C) Her brother James moves out
D) She is fired from the Covent Garden Theatre
2. Why is Maddie effectively dismissed from her job at the theatre?
A) She is repeatedly late and misses meetings
B) Katherine decides Maddie is no longer compatible as her PA after a diary mix-up
C) She is caught stealing office supplies
D) She refuses to work overtime
3. What does Maddie do with the deposit money she sends in Chapter Four?
A) She books a holiday to Florence
B) She secures a room in a shared flat in Wandsworth
C) She pays off her father's medical bills
D) She buys a new wardrobe for her job interviews
4. What is the name of the cookbook concept Maddie pitches at Orange Tree Publishing?
A) Flavor Pairings
B) Cooking Combos
C) The Pear and Cinnamon Book
D) Afra's Kitchen
5. What is the cause of Maddie's father's death, as revealed by the postmortem?
A) A heart attack
B) A distal large bowel obstruction, a complication of Parkinson's
C) Pneumonia
D) Complications from a fall
6. What does Maddie discover about her mother's relationship with Kwaku?
A) They are business partners
B) They are old friends who reconnected after her father's death
C) They were lovers before her mother's arranged marriage and reconnected later
D) He is her mother's cousin
7. What does Maddie's father leave her in his will?
A) The family house in Thornton Heath
B) A sum of fifty thousand pounds
C) His collection of newspapers
D) A share of the hostel in Ghana
8. What happens at the end of the novel (the epilogue)?
A) Maddie moves to Ghana permanently
B) Maddie visits her father's grave, updates him on her life, and prepares for a lunch with Sam's mother
C) Maddie gets engaged to Sam
D) Maddie quits her job to write full-time
Part 2: Character Motivation (Questions 9–13)
9. Why does Maddie initially decline Avi's suggestion to move into a room in Crouch End?
A) She cannot afford the rent
B) She feels obligated to stay and care for her father
C) She doesn't like the area
D) She wants to wait for her mother to return
10. Why does James decline to help Maddie with their father's care and the council tax bill?
A) He lives too far away
B) He believes Maddie is better at it and doesn't want to take responsibility
C) He is angry with their father
D) He is saving money for a house
11. Why does Maddie decide to attend Ben's CEO's birthday party in Chapter Twenty-one?
A) She wants to network for her career
B) She is trying to fill the empty afternoon and escape her grief
C) Ben explicitly invites her
D) She wants to meet Sophie
12. Why does Maddie agree to contribute three thousand pounds toward the funeral bill?
A) She wants to impress her mother
B) She feels it is her duty as the child who cared for her father
C) She wants to avoid conflict with James
D) She is pressured by Uncle Freddie
13. Why does Sam ask Maddie out to dinner in Chapter Forty?
A) He wants to discuss business with her publisher
B) He is attracted to her honesty and wants to get to know her
C) He feels sorry for her after her father's death
D) He wants to make Jo jealous
Part 3: Theme and Symbol (Questions 14–17)
14. What does the name “Maame” come to symbolize for Maddie throughout the novel?
A) A term of endearment that carries the burden of premature adulthood and responsibility
B) A nickname she has always hated
C) A name that connects her to her Ghanaian heritage without any negative feelings
D) A name she only uses with her mother
15. What does the macaron box that Ben gives Maddie symbolize in Chapter Sixteen?
A) His wealth and generosity
B) His attempt to control and please her, masking his deception
C) A shared love of French pastries
D) A promise of a future together
16. What does the recurring motif of Maddie's Google searches represent?
A) Her curiosity about the world
B) Her attempt to find answers and guidance for situations she feels unprepared for
C) Her addiction to social media
D) Her desire to become a researcher
17. What does the act of Maddie destroying the cake she planned to decorate for her father's birthday symbolize?
A) Her anger at her flatmates
B) Her grief and guilt over missing his final moments
C) Her dislike of baking
D) Her desire to start a new tradition
Part 4: Synthesis (Questions 18–20)
18. How does Maddie's relationship with her mother change from the beginning to the end of the novel?
A) They become closer after her mother returns from Ghana and they reconcile their differences
B) They become more distant after the argument about Kwaku
C) They never resolve their conflicts
D) Maddie cuts off contact with her mother entirely
19. What is the significance of Maddie's inheritance from her father?
A) It allows her to buy a house
B) It provides financial relief and a sense of being seen and valued by her father
C) It causes a permanent rift with her brother
D) It makes her decide to quit her job
20. What is the central theme of Maddie's journey in Maame?
A) The importance of romantic love
B) The struggle to define oneself outside of family duty and cultural expectation
C) The pursuit of a high-powered career
D) The necessity of religious faith
Answer Key with Explanations
1. B) Her father gets lost on Spar Lane
Maddie marks the day her father got lost, ten minutes from home, as “The Beginning” of his decline and her role as his primary caregiver.
2. B) Katherine decides Maddie is no longer compatible as her PA after a diary mix-up
Maddie is scapegoated for a scheduling error she wasn't told about; Katherine decides she is “no longer compatible,” and Ellie and Claire frame it as a promotion to an “independent role.”
3. B) She secures a room in a shared flat in Wandsworth
Maddie sends the deposit to Jo and Cam to secure the room in the ground-floor maisonette, a key step toward her independence.
4. B) Cooking Combos
Maddie pitches “Cooking Combos,” which is later adopted by OTP under the name “Flavor Pairings” without crediting her.
5. B) A distal large bowel obstruction, a complication of Parkinson's
The registrar relays this cause of death to Maddie in Chapter Twenty-five.
6. C) They were lovers before her mother's arranged marriage and reconnected later
Maddie's mother reveals she was promised to her father in an arranged marriage for wealth, that she loved Kwaku, and that they reconnected on her visits to Ghana.
7. B) A sum of fifty thousand pounds
The will leaves the entire sum to Maddie alone, shocking her mother and brother.
8. B) Maddie visits her father's grave, updates him on her life, and prepares for a lunch with Sam's mother
In the epilogue, she tells him about work, her writing, and her plans, and she laughs when sunlight reflects off the headstone.
9. B) She feels obligated to stay and care for her father
At this point, Maddie is still living at home and performing caregiving duties four evenings a week; she declines Avi's suggestion.
10. B) He believes Maddie is better at it and doesn't want to take responsibility
James declines to help with their father or the council tax, and later says no one can look after their father like Maddie.
11. B) She is trying to fill the empty afternoon and escape her grief
After Nia leaves, Maddie struggles with the empty afternoon and a birthday reminder prompts her to attend the celebration.
12. B) She feels it is her duty as the child who cared for her father
Maddie empties her savings to contribute the largest share, driven by a sense of filial obligation.
13. B) He is attracted to her honesty and wants to get to know her
Sam clarifies that he asked her out because he is attracted to her honesty, not out of pity or business interest.
14. A) A term of endearment that carries the burden of premature adulthood and responsibility
Maddie tells Angelina she used to love the name but now hates what it means: it made her grow up too fast and take on the mother role.
15. B) His attempt to control and please her, masking his deception
The macarons are a performative gift that makes Maddie uneasy, foreshadowing his betrayal and his pattern of treating her differently from Sophie.
16. B) Her attempt to find answers and guidance for situations she feels unprepared for
From pregnancy risk to depression symptoms to first-date advice, Maddie's searches reflect her isolation and lack of trusted guidance.
17. B) Her grief and guilt over missing his final moments
Maddie destroys the cake after learning her father died while she was out, channeling her self-blame into the act.
18. A) They become closer after her mother returns from Ghana and they reconcile their differences
Despite conflicts, they reconcile: her mother apologizes, they speak in Twi, and Maddie plans to accompany her to Ghana.
19. B) It provides financial relief and a sense of being seen and valued by her father
The inheritance is a final act of recognition from her father, easing her financial precarity and affirming her worth.
20. B) The struggle to define oneself outside of family duty and cultural expectation
Maddie's arc is about moving from being “Maame” (the responsible caretaker) to becoming “Maddie” (her own person), balancing her heritage with her own desires.