The Famished Road MCQs

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Author: Nasir Iqbal | Assistant Professor of English Literature

The Famished Road MCQs
Updated on: November 6, 2025
Estimated Reading Time: 18 min

The Famished Road MCQs

1. What was the road constantly hungry for?

A. Sacrifice
B. Food
C. Spirits
D. Souls

D. Souls.
The road, once a river, was always hungry and consumed the lives and souls of travellers.

2. Why did the spirits sorrow greatly in the land of origins?

A. Fear of the King
B. Lost love and unredeemed suffering
C. Lack of food
D. Endless feasting

B. Lost love and unredeemed suffering.
Returning spirits were inconsolable for the love and suffering they left behind in the Living world.

3. What did the spirits dislike about existence in the world of the Living?

A. The sunlight
B. The simple beauties
C. Enshrined injustices and dying
D. The wild animals

C. Enshrined injustices and dying.
They disliked the rigours, unfulfilled longings, injustices, and the simple fact of dying.
4. In what form did the spirits’ king sometimes appear?

A. A great snake
B. A luminous butterfly
C. A great cat
D. A terrifying god

C. A great cat.
The spirits’ king was a wonderful personage who sometimes appeared in the form of a great cat.

5. What was the essence of the spirit king’s genius across his lives?

A. Love of power
B. Love of wealth
C. Love of transformation
D. Love of war

C. Love of transformation.
The common thread was his love of transformation, changing love into higher realities.

6. Why did the narrator, Azaro, choose to stay and be born this time?

A. To avoid death
B. To make his mother’s bruised face happy
C. To earn riches
D. To become a hero

B. To make his mother’s bruised face happy.
He wanted to stay to make happy the bruised face of the woman who would be his mother.

7. What did the spirit king tell Azaro about his life path?

A. He would be rich
B. He would be protected but full of riddles
C. He would live to be twenty-one
D. He would be alone

B. He would be protected but full of riddles.
The King said his life would be full of riddles, though he would be protected.
8. What did the spirits call the journey into the world of the Living?

A. A challenge
B. An adventure
C. The exile
D. The crossing

C. The exile.
Surviving the crossing was considered the beginning of “the exile” from their land of origin.

9. What did the spirits promise to do if Azaro didn’t return to the river?

A. Make him rich
B. Make his life unbearable
C. Give him dreams
D. Help his father

B. Make his life unbearable.
The spirits promised to make his life unbearable if he did not honor his pact to return.

10. What mark did Azaro possess that risked revealing his spirit identity?

A. A scar on his neck
B. A mark on his palm
C. Three eyes
D. White hair

B. A mark on his palm.
He feared recognition but had managed to avoid discovery, apart from a mark on his palm.

11. What prophecy did the herbalist make about Azaro’s life?

A. He would become a king
B. He would fight with death
C. He would find treasure
D. He would be a failure

B. He would fight with death.
The herbalist said Azaro was a child who didn’t want to be born and would fight with death.
12. Why did the herbalist say Azaro would keep falling ill and likely die young?

A. He ate bad food
B. He broke his pact
C. He hid his spirit tokens
D. He didn’t believe in God

C. He hid his spirit tokens.
He hid his spirit tokens on earth, and until they were found, he would keep falling ill.

13. What familiar objects did Azaro see in the marketplace that transformed?

A. Dogs, chickens, and goats
B. Load-carriers and women
C. Crabs and fish
D. All of the above

D. All of the above.
He saw nórmal people and animals transform into bizarre figures, showing the market’s illusions.

14. What realization struck Azaro after the bizarre figures left him alone in the market?

A. He was going mád
B. He was truly visible
C. It wasn’t just humans who came to marketplaces
D. The spirits were weak

C. It wasn’t just humans who came to marketplaces.
He realized the market was frequented by more than just humans; spirits mingled there.

15. Who was the eighth figure standing in the room during the ritual?

A. Dad
B. The herbalist
C. The police officer
D. Madame Koto

C. The police officer.
The eighth figure standing among the seven seated men was the police officer.
16. What animal circled the seven figures during the ritual?

A. A fly
B. A moth
C. A spirit
D. A lizard

B. A moth.
A moth circled the seven figures at the table during the oath-taking ritual.

17. What did the first man swear would happen if he betrayed his oath?

A. He would go blind
B. He should be run over by a lorry
C. He would lose his son
D. He would be jailed

B. He should be run over by a lorry.
The first man swore that if he betrayed the oath, he should be run over by a lorry.

18. What happened to the police officer’s son’s photograph when the seventh man swore his oath?

A. It was stolen
B. It crashed to the floor without breaking
C. It caught fire
D. It turned black

B. It crashed to the floor without breaking.
As the seventh man swore, the photograph crashed to the floor, but the glass didn’t break.

19. What happened to the dead boy’s clothes Mum stripped off Azaro?

A. She washed them
B. She burned them with kerosene
C. She hid them in the forest
D. She gave them to beggars

B. She burned them with kerosene.
Mum burned the dead boy’s clothes with kerosene and herbal fluids as a cleansing ritual.
20. What was the herbalist’s fee for helping Mum?

A. A white cockerel and gin
B. Very expensive
C. A piece of gold
D. Nothing at all

B. Very expensive.
The fierce-looking herbalist told Mum the fee would be “very expensive.”

21. What did the herbalist say was too powerful for her to break?

A. The curse of the king
B. The magic of the spirits
C. The last spell
D. The poverty curse

C. The last spell.
The herbalist confessed she had broken all but one spell, which was too powerful for her.

22. What event did Mum wait for, outside the police officer’s house, before acting?

A. The police leaving
B. The sun rising
C. Lightning to strike the house
D. Her relatives arriving

C. Lightning to strike the house.
Mum waited three hours in the rain for the crucial signal: lightning striking the house.

23. What did Dad begin asking the silent room after Azaro’s return?

A. Questions about his job
B. Riddles that only the dead can answer
C. Questions about Mum’s faith
D. Riddles about the spirit king

B. Riddles that only the dead can answer.
Dad sat smoking and asking the silent room “riddles that only the dead can answer.”
24. What comparison did Azaro make about Dad in the dark, smoking alone?

A. A silent warrior
B. A drunkard
C. A cigarette smoked alone
D. A fierce ghost

C. A cigarette smoked alone.
Azaro thought of Dad as “a cigarette smoked alone in the dark,” symbolizing his isolation.

25. What did the wooden pole in the forest clearing do?

A. It broke immediately
B. It burst into flower
C. It turned into a pillar of fire
D. A cat guarded it

B. It burst into flower.
The solitary wooden pole stuck in the earth had miraculously burst into flower.

26. What was the woman who limped toward Azaro in the clearing doing?

A. Weeping sadly
B. Laughing dementedly
C. Singing a warning
D. Offering a gift

B. Laughing dementedly.
The deformed woman in the white robe approached Azaro and started laughing dementedly.

27. What animal did the owl turn into after being ‘shot’ and falling to the earth?

A. A black cat
B. A pool of yellow water
C. A red snake
D. A white bird

B. A pool of yellow water.
The owl, after falling, turned into a little pool of yellow water and evaporated.
28. What did the glistening black snake do among the pole’s roots?

A. Bitten the woman
B. Protected the pole
C. Talked to Azaro
D. Turned into a rope

A. Bitten the woman.
Dad revealed that a snake had come from the roots and bitten the woman who had pulled the pole out.

29. What was Dad carrying in the sack on his shoulder when returning from the forest?

A. Gold treasure
B. A wild boar
C. The dead woman
D. Fish bags

B. A wild boar.
Blood dripped from the sack, and Dad explained he had caught and killed a wild boar.

30. What was Mum doing in the kitchen, crying, when Dad and Azaro returned?

A. Cleaning the room
B. Fanning the wood fire for stew
C. Hiding from Dad
D. Counting money

B. Fanning the wood fire for stew.
Mum was in the kitchen, fanning the wood fire for stew, with tears running down her face.

31. How did Dad respond when a guest questioned the wretchedness of their room during the feast?

A. He became angry
B. He smiled sheepishly
C. He hit the guest
D. He cried out in shame

B. He smiled sheepishly.
When a guest insulted the room, Dad merely smiled sheepishly and did not get angry.
32. What did Madame Koto warn Azaro would happen if he succeeded?

A. He would become a politician
B. Success would never scatter his spirit
C. He would forget his mother
D. He would be invisible

B. Success would never scatter his spirit.
She blessed him, saying success would never scatter his spirit but would make him fly higher.

33. What did Azaro’s spirit companions urge him to return to?

A. The river, where feasting knows no end
B. The land of magic
C. The city of gold
D. The marketplace

A. The river, where feasting knows no end.
They sang to him, asking him to return to the land “where feasting knows no end.”

34. What happened when Azaro tried to move the stone covering the well?

A. He couldn’t move it
B. He moved it easily
C. He heard voices
D. Water flowed out

A. He couldn’t move it.
He came to a well covered by a plank and a big stone, but he couldn’t move the stone.

35. What animal caused Azaro to find himself following its stiffened tail into the forest?

A. The black cat
B. A monkey
C. A dog
D. A squirrel

C. A dog.
A dog barked at him, and he found himself following its stiffened tail, fracturing the paths.
36. What did the children of the future civilization build their cities from in Azaro’s vision?

A. Fire and dreams
B. Stone, marble, diamond, and gold
C. Glass and silver
D. Plastic and light

B. Stone, marble, diamond, and gold.
He saw people building a fabulous new city of stone, marble, diamond, and gold.

37. What did the lizard on the path die with caught in an exaggerated nod?

A. Its tail
B. Its head
C. Its foot
D. Its tongue

B. Its head.
The lizard died with its head caught in an exaggerated nod after a bicycle ran over it.

38. What did Mum complain had happened to her stall at the market?

A. It was robbed
B. It had been taken over
C. It burned down
D. It was fined heavily

B. It had been taken over.
Mum complained her stall was taken over, forcing her to hawk all day for little money.

39. What did Mum say about Madame Koto’s power and her palm-wine?

A. She was a saint
B. She put charmed beard hair in the wine
C. She used special perfume
D. She was a good businesswoman

B. She put charmed beard hair in the wine.
People said she put one plucked, charmed beard hair into her palm-wine to attract money.
40. What did the Party of the Póor promise, winning considerable support?

A. Free electricity
B. Never to poison the people
C. Unlimited food
D. A clean environment

B. Never to poison the people.
They won support by promising they would never poison the people, unlike the Party of the Rich.

41. What happened when the thug tried to beat the man with the bloated eye?

A. The man ran away
B. Azaro hit the thug
C. The thug smashed his arm with the machete
D. The man did not utter a sound or bleed

D. The man did not utter a sound or bleed.
After Azaro hit the thug, the man with the bloated eye didn’t bleed or make a sound.

42. What did Mum bring home from the political van with a look of exhausted triumph?

A. A new dress
B. Free milk
C. Party leaflets
D. A sack of garri

B. Free milk.
Mum emerged from the fight with a bruised face, proudly holding her basin of free milk.

43. What did Dad conclude about the “free milk” Mum brought home?

A. It was delicious
B. It was rotten and bad
C. It was a sign of hope
D. It was not enough

B. It was rotten and bad.
Dad tasted the milk, wrinkled his face, and said, “Rotten milk. Bad milk.”
44. What was the central focus of the invisible civilian armies’ fighting in Azaro’s vision?

A. Money
B. Survival
C. Tribalism
D. Ideas

D. Ideas.
He realized wars were fought in a tiny space and were fueled by ideas, not just battles.

45. What did Azaro discover about the lizard that left the room after Dad’s command?

A. It was dead
B. It nodded three times
C. It transformed into a cat
D. It was still under the cupboard

B. It nodded three times.
The lizard came out, nodded three times, and fled, obeying Dad’s command.

46. What did Mum believe had happened to her husband’s money from the fight?

A. He spent it on books
B. He invited the whole planet to a party
C. He was robbed
D. He bought a new car

B. He invited the whole planet to a party.
She was dismayed he immediately let it be known he was throwing a huge, reckless party.

47. What literary works did Dad make Azaro read aloud after winning the fight money?

A. Greek and Roman classics and the Cabbala
B. Homer and Arabian Nights
C. Shaka the Zulu and Spanish love poetry
D. All of the above

D. All of the above.
Dad bought many books, including classics, the Cabbala, and Shaka the Zulu, for Azaro to read aloud.
48. What did Dad claim was his destination when traveling in the desert with the four-headed spirit?

A. The moon
B. The ship in full mast
C. The land of invisibility
D. The African shore

B. The ship in full mast.
The spirit said the ship, in full mast, waited to take them home across the oceans of sand.

49. What did Mum say was the only way to get out of Africa?

A. To sail to Europe
B. To become a priest
C. To get Africa out of you
D. To become invisible

C. To get Africa out of you.
She said a white man told her the only way to get out of Africa was to get Africa out of you.

50. What did the duiker’s eyes reveal to Azaro in the final celebration?

A. The forest was safe
B. Madame Koto was pregnant with three children
C. Dad was being cheated
D. The celebration was a failure

B. Madame Koto was pregnant with three children.
He saw in the duiker’s eyes that Madame Koto was pregnant with three strange children.

Brief Overview

The Famished Road is a novel by Ben Okri, first published in 1991. The narrative is a work of Magic Realism centered on the life of Azaro, a spirit-child (abiku), who lives a life of poverty and spiritual chaos in a Nigerian community.

The novel begins with Azaro, who constantly blurs the lines between the spirit world and the world of the Living. Azaro chooses to remain on Earth to bring happiness to his mother. He lives in poverty with his parents. His father, Dad, is often angry and proud, earning money as a boxer. Mum works tirelessly as a street trader. Their compound burns down early in the novel, highlighting their instability.

Azaro is briefly kidnapped by a police officer and his wife, who lost their own son. Mum courageously rescues Azaro, believing ghosts are holding him.

Dad wins a major boxing match against the feared Green Leopard. He uses the prize money to throw a huge party. Beggars attend, led by a girl named Helen, whose strange beauty captures Azaro’s attention.

Dad later argues about politics with Madame Koto, a powerful bar owner and priestess. Koto buys a small car. The car crashes during a political rally, and Azaro’s friend, Ade, is injured.

Dad then falls into a deep coma after the fight. In his dreams, he fights spirits and seeks justice for the póor. Dad wakes up with outstanding clarity and new wisdom. He tells Mum that they must keep their road and life open to all possibilities, despite the suffering.

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