Many elements of this story are repeated, but with a twist or difference — such as the way that Clare lives in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and as a cat lives in the Bethlehem that is in the Middle East. Or two things will be related, but very different — such as Clare and her sister; or the two soldiers, Simcha and Aaron. Or events will have two very different interpretations — such as when the Ms. Sealand waves to Clare, or the Israeli soldiers end up in a house with Omar. As a class, make a list of these pairs of things that are “the same but different”. Discuss what this means in the greater context of this book.
