Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English? In her book The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts, author Maxine Hong Kingston examines themes ______blank childhood, womanhood, and Chinese American identity by intertwining autobiography and mythology.

Choice B is the best answer. 'Themes of childhood' is one noun phrase, with 'themes of' implicitly carrying over to the other items on the list ('themes of childhood, [themes of] womanhood, and [themes of] Chinese American identity'). Choice A is incorrect. This choice inappropriately breaks up the introduction of a list. Also, 'In her book…themes of' is not an independent clause, thanks to the dangling 'of' at the end, so it can't precede a colon. Choice C is incorrect. This choice inappropriately breaks up the introduction of a list. Also, 'In her book…themes of' is not an independent clause, thanks to the dangling 'of' at the end, so it can't precede a single dash. Choice D is incorrect. This choice inappropriately breaks up the introduction of a list. 'Themes of' implicitly carries over to each item on the list ('themes of childhood, [themes of] womanhood, and [themes of] Chinese American identity'), so we don't want to use a comma to separate it.