QUESTION BANK WITH ANSWERS

MY DONKEY SALLY

A. Answer in brief.
1. Why did Gerry want to have a donkey as a pet?
Ans: Gerry happened to see quite a few donkeys with their babies at Katerina's wedding. He
immediately took to them, as their soft knees, great ears and wobbly walk attracted him so much
that he wanted to possess a donkey as his pet.
2. What made Gerry feel that the family was unfriendly?
Ans: The day before Gerry’s birthday, he observed everyone in the family behaving strangely. It
was obvious that they were doing something without his knowledge. On seeing Gerry overhear
them, Leslie sent him off rudely. This made Gerry feel that the family was unfriendly.

B. Answer in detail.
1. Describe the entry of the donkey into Gerry’s bedroom. How did it impress Gerry?
Ans: Gerry woke up on his birthday and wanted to go out and see his presents. Before he opened
the door, the bedroom door burst open and a donkey walked in. It was dressed in coloured crepe
paper, Christmas decorations and three enormous feathers were attached skillfully between its
large ears. The donkey galloped into the bedroom with Leslie hanging from its tail. The donkey
stopped near Gerry’s bed and stared at him in surprise. Gerry had never seen so beautiful a
creature ever before. It had the softest muzzle, the most beautiful skin colour and ‘white socks’
over its tiny polished hooves were as neat as a dancer’s shoes. Gerry was speechless looking at the
best present he could ever think of for his birthday.
2. What efforts do you think the family took to make the birthday very special for Gerry?
Ans: Gerry had asked his mother for a special gift for his birthday for which he was prepared
to forgo all other gifts. He wanted a donkey. His mother did not promise anything to him but
immediately decided in her mind to gift him one. As his mother didn’t show any enthusiasm,
Gerry didn’t expect that from her. Not only the mother, the whole family got together to surprise
Gerry on his birthday. His mother planned a shed for the animal. Larry, Margo, Leslie and Spiro all
secretly planned for the donkey’s arrival. On the morning of Gerry’s birthday, they decorated the
donkey attractively and brought her to his bedroom even before he came out of it. The whole
family made that birthday the most special one for Gerry.

C. Read the lines and answer the questions.

1. “Perhaps she wants to keep plants in it or store sweet potatoes for the winter.”
a. Who speaks the above lines to whom?
b. What is he talking about?
c. Who wants to keep plants or vegetables? Was that the real reason?

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 Ans: a. Costas, Gerry’s maid’s brother speaks to Gerry.
b. He is talking about the bamboo house he was erecting for Gerry’s mother.
c. Costas says Gerry’s mother had asked him to erect the bamboo house to keep plants or
store sweet potatoes for the winter. It is in fact for the donkey that Gerry is to get on his
birthday.
2. 
I took her out again and tied her to an olive tree, then stayed for half an hour in a dream-like trance
admiring her from every angle while she grazed quietly.
a. Who was the narrator admiring so?
b. How did the narrator get her?
c. Why was the narrator so happy? What did he name her?
Ans: a. The narrator was admiring his new pet donkey.
b. The narrator got her as a birthday gift from his family.
c. The narrator was enchanted by the baby donkeys he saw at a wedding and wanted to
possess one. When he got a donkey as a gift he was really delighted. He named her Sally.

D. Answer in brief. (Think and answer)

1. How did his mother’s gift become more special for Gerry?
Ans: His family made sure that the baby donkey that he got as a gift for his birthday was the baby

of the same donkey he had liked a lot at Katerina’s wedding. So it became more special as this was
not just any donkey but the baby of the one he had wanted to own.
2. How did the donkey show that it was equally fond of Gerry?
Ans: The moment the donkey was brought into the room, it stopped to look at Gerry with

surprise. It also went near him and gave a throaty chuckle and thrust its muzzle into the
outstretched arms of Gerry as if it was accepting his hug.

E. Answer in detail. (Think and answer)

Why do you think people keep pets? Was the donkey a peculiar pet to have? Give reasons.
(Free response)

SWAMI AND THE SUM

A. Answer in brief.
1. What situation was Swaminathan in? Why was he confused?
Ans: Swami was given a sum by his father to work on. However long he gazed at the sum, he was
unable to find the answer to the sum. He was confused because ever time he looked at the sum, it
seemed to acquire a new meaning.
2. Why did Swaminathan want to know if the mangoes were ripe or unripe?
Ans: Swaminathan felt that knowing whether the mangoes were ripe or unripe contained the
key to the problem. He strongly felt that asking fifteen annas for ten unripe mangoes would be
scandalous. So he wanted to know if the mangoes were ripe or unripe.

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