Quiz Only the Brave Danielle Steel

Only the Brave Quiz: 20 Questions to Test Your Understanding

Are you ready to revisit Danielle Steel’s World War II novel Only the Brave? This quiz spans the entire story, from Sophia Alexander's first stirrings of conscience in 1937 Berlin to her final life-changing decision after the war. Questions cover plot events, character motivations, themes, symbols, and larger synthesis. Each question is based on the book's outline and key scenes. After you finish, check the answer key for brief explanations.

Questions

1. (Plot – Sequence) Where and when does the novel’s main story begin?
A) Berlin, 1937
B) Berlin, 1939
C) Switzerland, 1941
D) Ravensbrück, 1943

2. (Plot) What is Dr. Thomas Alexander’s profession?
A) Lawyer
B) Surgeon
C) Pastor
D) University professor

3. (Plot – Sequence) What event directly forces Theresa and Heinrich von Ernst to flee Germany?
A) Heinrich’s arrest by the Gestapo
B) The outbreak of World War II
C) Heinrich being classified as Jewish under the Nuremberg Laws
D) The bombing of Berlin

4. (Plot) Who guides Sophia, Theresa, and Heinrich over the Alps to Switzerland?
A) Hans Mahler
B) Claus
C) Dr. Strauss
D) Father Weiss

5. (Character Motivation) Why does Sophia decide to enter the convent after returning from the Swiss escape?
A) She has always dreamed of being a nun
B) She wants to hide from the Gestapo
C) She feels called to serve God and continue resistance work
D) Her father orders her to go

6. (Character Motivation) Why does Lieutenant Hans Mahler help Sophia while she is in Ravensbrück?
A) He is a secret member of the resistance
B) He falls in love with her
C) He is ordered to by his superiors
D) He hopes to escape the camp with her

7. (Plot) What happens to Dr. Thomas Alexander after he refuses to implement the Aktion T4 program?
A) He is promoted
B) He is arrested and sent to Dachau, where he later dies
C) He escapes to Switzerland
D) He is forced to retire

8. (Plot – Sequence) How do Sophia and her four friends escape from Ravensbrück?
A) They bribe a guard
B) They hide in a supply truck
C) They blend in with the factory night shift, wearing civilian clothes under their uniforms
D) They dig a tunnel during roll call

9. (Theme) What central idea does the epigraph (attributed to Albert Einstein) express?
A) Bravery is the highest virtue
B) A life lived in service to others is the only life worth living
C) Love conquers all obstacles
D) Faith is stronger than fear

10. (Symbol) What does the red bird that Sophia sees at dawn in Chapter 17 represent?
A) The spirit of her dead father
B) A sign urging her to follow her love for Ted
C) The Nazi swastika
D) The coming of spring

11. (Character Motivation) Why does Dr. Thomas Alexander refuse the Reich general’s order to euthanize “undesirable” patients?
A) He is afraid of being caught by the Gestapo
B) He believes in his medical oath and refuses to kill innocent people
C) He wants to protect his Jewish patients
D) He does not recognize the general’s authority

12. (Plot) In which women’s concentration camp is Sophia imprisoned?
A) Auschwitz
B) Dachau
C) Ravensbrück
D) Bergen-Belsen

13. (Theme) How does the novel contrast Sophia and her sister Theresa during the war?
A) One is brave, the other is cowardly
B) One serves strangers at great risk, while the other lives in safe luxury in Zurich
C) One believes in God, the other is an atheist
D) One stays in Germany, the other flees to America

14. (Character Motivation) Why does Sophia become more committed to her faith and her vocation after her imprisonment and escape?
A) She sees her survival as a reason to continue helping others
B) She is forced by Mother Paul to take vows
C) She wants to forget Ted Blake
D) She has no other options after the war

15. (Plot) What happens to Tamar during the escape from Ravensbrück?
A) She is recaptured by the SS
B) She dies in her sleep from exhaustion
C) She decides to stay in Germany
D) She joins the French resistance

16. (Character Motivation) What ultimately convinces Sophia to leave the convent and choose a life with Ted Blake?
A) Ted convinces her in a long argument
B) Theresa gives her sisterly advice
C) She sees a red bird at dawn and interprets it as a sign
D) Mother Paul releases her from her vows

17. (Plot) What decision does Sophia make in the final chapter?
A) She becomes Mother Superior of the Berlin convent
B) She marries Ted Blake and leaves religious life
C) She returns to nursing in a Berlin hospital
D) She moves to Switzerland with her sister

18. (Symbol) What do the scars on Sophia’s arm, which Ted notices, primarily represent?
A) Her beauty and femininity
B) Her suffering and survival in Ravensbrück
C) A punishment for her resistance work
D) A childhood accident

19. (Synthesis) Based on the novel as a whole, what does “being brave” mean?
A) Fighting in the military
B) Taking small, risky moral stands and helping others despite danger
C) Rejecting all forms of authority
D) Surviving at any cost

20. (Synthesis – Short Answer) Name one character (other than Sophia) who dies in the course of the novel. (Write your answer.)

Answer Key

  1. A – The story opens in Berlin in 1937, with Sophia managing her family while her mother is ill.
  2. B – Thomas Alexander is a celebrated surgeon who secretly treats Jewish patients.
  3. C – Heinrich is classified as Jewish under the Nuremberg Laws, which triggers an imminent arrest order.
  4. B – Claus, a mountain guide, leads them over the Alps to safety.
  5. C – After her sister’s escape, Sophia feels drawn to religious life and continues her resistance work as a postulant.
  6. B – Hans falls in love with Sophia and later helps her escape, even though he knows she cannot love him back.
  7. B – He is arrested by the Gestapo, sent to Dachau, and dies from injuries and pneumonia after seven months.
  8. C – They wear civilian clothes under their uniforms and slip out with the night‑shift factory workers.
  9. B – The epigraph quotes Einstein: “The only life worth living is a life lived in service to others.”
  10. B – Sophia sees the red bird as a divine sign to follow Ted and leave the convent.
  11. B – He refuses on principle, upholding his medical oath despite the risk to his life.
  12. C – Sophia is sent to Ravensbrück after her arrest in Berlin.
  13. B – Theresa lives comfortably in Zurich with her family, while Sophia risks everything to rescue strangers.
  14. A – Sophia views her survival as a gift and rededicates herself to helping orphans and refugees.
  15. B – Tamar dies quietly in her sleep during the two‑day walk to Windberge.
  16. C – The red bird appears at dawn, and Sophia interprets it as the sign she needed to catch Ted at the train station.
  17. B – She abandons her habit, puts on a pink dress, and tells Ted she will not take final vows, choosing to marry him.
  18. B – The scars are visible evidence of the beatings and torture she endured in the camp.
  19. B – The novel repeatedly shows bravery through acts of quiet resistance, moral choices, and self‑sacrifice.
  20. Acceptable answers: Dr. Thomas Alexander, Tamar, Claus, Mother Regina, or any other named character who dies in the story.