CAMBRIDGE LOWER SECONDARY ENGLISH 9: END OF UNIT 7 TEST

Name Date

End of unit 7 test

Section A: Reading
Read the extract from the short story ‘The Journey Within’ by Annelise Heurtier,
then answer questions 1–8.

Aveleen managed to abandon the path she had been stuck on for two days. But it was
not too long before she became thoroughly frustrated. The slope was slippery, and the
summit was still so far off. . . Would she be able to make it the whole way? She was
not even sure how many days the journey was meant to last. ‘It will take as much time
5 as is necessary,’ Celegorn had assured her. How could he say such a thing when the
smallest delay might prevent her from bidding him farewell?
Aveleen hitched herself onto a small ledge as one of the suns was setting. Carved into
the cliff face was a bronze door, so high that it would have loomed over the heads of
the Giants from her own land.
10 Aveleen ran her hands over the bronze before recoiling sharply. The door was opening
in the middle.
‘Welcome.’
A slender woman with big, shimmering eyes beckoned her inside. Aveleen let her bag
slide to the ground and started forward, unable to offer any resistance.
15 Her first few paces left her stunned. She marvelled at the space, the light, the sky –
how could all this exist inside a mountain? There was so much to admire that she
found it hard to breathe. Trees, flowers, animals, buildings and people. . . wherever
she laid her eyes, she was struck by the exquisite perfection around her. The feeling
overwhelmed her, as though her five senses had finally realised their true purpose.
20 The woman gave her garments whose colours did not exist in her land. She then
presented her with all manner of unfamiliar dishes, like desserts that were somehow
both piping-hot and icy-cold, or biscuits whose texture and flavour shifted with every
bite, one second as dense as a storm cloud, the next as light as sea foam.
Aveleen felt she could spend an entire lifetime exploring the wonders of this place and
25 still not skim the surface. Time seemed to stand still. She stayed there for several days,
maybe months, until the woman with the crystalline eyes returned to her side.
‘Tomorrow, you are to become one of us. If you live with us for ever more, you will not
know pain or suffering, you . . . ’

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 CAMBRIDGE LOWER SECONDARY ENGLISH 9: END OF UNIT 7 TEST

Aveleen let herself be cradled by the woman’s words. Her face was so reassuring, the
30 tone of her voice so enchanting. Again there was a certain familiarity. Her face evoked
a vague memory of Celegorn, which stirred Aveleen. How could she have forgotten her
mission? They were relying on her.
She decided to leave the City.

1 Suggest two ways that the writer uses structure to show Aveleen’s frustration in
paragraph 1. Give a clear example from the text for each suggestion.

[2]

2 Identify the main cause of Aveleen’s frustration in paragraph 1.

Tick () one box.

she is afraid of falling on the slippery path

she is tired when climbing to the summit

she thinks her father may die before she returns

she does not know where she is going [1]

3 Give two pieces of evidence from paragraph 2 that show this is a fantasy story.

[2]

4 Give two single words from lines 15–19 that show Aveleen’s amazement when she enters
the mountain door.

and [1]

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 CAMBRIDGE LOWER SECONDARY ENGLISH 9: END OF UNIT 7 TEST

5 ‘She then presented her with all manner of unfamiliar dishes, like desserts that were
somehow both piping-hot and icy-cold, or biscuits whose texture and flavour shifted with
every bite, one second as dense as a storm cloud, the next as light as sea foam.’

Explain one way that the writer uses language in these lines to show the magical nature of
the land Aveleen has found herself in.

[1]

6 Suggest what effect is created by describing the woman as having ‘crystalline eyes’
(line 26).

[1]

7 Explain what the phrase ‘cradled by the woman’s words’ (line 29) suggests about
Aveleen’s feelings.

[1]

8 Explain why the last paragraph is an effective ending to this extract.

[1]

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 CAMBRIDGE LOWER SECONDARY ENGLISH 9: END OF UNIT 7 TEST

Section B: Writing
1 Write the opening of a fantasy story set in a land where animals can talk.
You could include:
• other features of fantasy stories
• a description of the land and its effect on your central character
• figurative language to make your story interesting. [10]

Space for your plan:

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Cambridge Lower Secondary English 9 – Creamer, Clare & Rees-Bidder © Cambridge University Press 2021 5
 CAMBRIDGE LOWER SECONDARY ENGLISH 9: END OF UNIT 7 TEST

Cambridge Lower Secondary English 9 – Creamer, Clare & Rees-Bidder © Cambridge University Press 2021 6