Think you’ve got your head wrapped around The Book of Laughter and Forgetting? Put your knowledge to
the test. Good luck — the Stickman is counting on you!
Q. Why does Éluard float away into the sky with the other circle dancers?
They've died. They're going to heaven.
They think they're better than everyone else.
They are being "carried away" by their ideals.
He's a poet. He's full of hot air.
Q. Why is Tamina's "kidnapper" called Raphael?
It's an allusion to the archangel of the same name.
He is Madame Raphael's son.
He's a really great artist.
It's a pseudonym. Kundera's trying to protect him.
Q. What kind of place is Tamina's island?
A Soviet gulag.
A retreat.
An "otherworld."
Raphael's hideout.
Q. Why do Gabrielle, Michelle, and Madame Raphael have "angelic" names?
Because they embody that questionable angelic laughter.
Because they are really divine agents sent to torment Sarah.
Because they have knowledge of good and evil.
Because they have a huge sense of entitlement.
Q. Why does Jan cry out for Daphnis on the nude beach?
He hates nude beaches, and he wants out.
He wants to go back to a time before everything got boring.
He wants to frighten Edwige away.
He wants to have a discussion about mythology and goddess power.