71 pages • 2 hours read
Firoozeh DumasIt Ain't So Awful, Falafel
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2016A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Essay Topics
Write an essay in which you analyze Zomorod’s character development over the course of this novel, tracking how she has grown over the two years during which it takes place. What is her most important coming-of-age moment, and how does it change her point of view?
What is the meaning of the novel’s title, It Ain’t So Awful, Falafel? Discuss its importance to the novel’s themes using evidence from the text.
What picture of America is painted in this novel? Discuss both positive and negative representations of the country and its citizens found in the novel.
How might this novel have been different if it were written from Zomorod’s parents’ perspective? What about if it were written from Carolyn’s?
Compare and contrast Zomorod’s and Carolyn’s lives. How are they similar? How are they different?
What role does the media play in this novel? How are the characters shaped by the media they consume, and how does it affect their actions?
Brock’s introduction is when he teases Zomorod. Does he change over the course of the book? If so, how?
What does “community” come to mean in this novel? How does this change how Zomorod and her family feel about living in the US?
How does this novel address discrimination that is normalized via things like bumper stickers or t-shirts? What effect do these everyday objects have on the novel’s characters?
Read a historical account of the Iranian hostage crisis. How faithful is the novel to real historical events? How does it differ? If it leaves some aspects of the crisis out, why do you think it does so? Support your answer with evidence from the text.
Related Titles
By Firoozeh Dumas
