Year of the Book
Discussion Questions
1. Anna’s teacher asks the students to think of times that they were perseverant. Can you think of a time that you were perseverant? Describe what you did. Why is important to be perseverant?
2. Why doesn’t Anna want to tell her friends that her mom cleans houses to earn money? Are you sometimes embarrassed to tell people things about your family? Why?
3. Ray, the crossing guard at school, is Anna’s friend even though he is much older than she is. Do you think it is important to have friends of different ages? Do you have friends who are older or younger than you are? How do these friendships differ from relationships with your peers?
4. Anna’s mother is an immigrant from China. Are you an immigrant? Do you know people who have immigrated to the United States from other countries? What do you think are some of the challenges faced by immigrants?
5. When Mr. Shepherd falls out of his wheelchair, why doesn’t he press the beeper around his neck to call for help?
6. Why does Anna feel out of place in Chinese class? Do you think she is interested in learning Chinese? Do you speak a language other than English? Do you have friends who are bilingual or multilingual? What is the difference between a letter of the alphabet and a Chinese character?
7. What does ABC stand for? (answer: American Born Chinese)
8. How do you think Anna feels when Lucy asks her if she is Japanese? How does she feel when Laura asks her how Chinese people think? What are stereotypes? Why are they hurtful?
9. How does Anna feel when Laura invites Allison to Michigan over Thanksgiving? How does Laura feel?
10. Describe Camille’s personality. How is she different from Anna?
11. Ms. Simmons asks the students to write a persuasive paragraph. If this was your assignment, what would you write?
12. Here are some of the themes in Year of the Book. Can you pick a few and apply them to your own life?
Resourcefulness
Perseverance
Shifting friendships
Cultural differences and similarities
Multiculturalism
Stereotypes
Thankfulness
13. Anna and her friends make a lot of things in this book. Try making:
Drawstring bags
Tan grams
Tennis ball launcher
Wontons
A time line of your life
14. Anna mentions a lot of books in Year of the Book. Read some of the books Anna reads and apply the themes in them to her life and to yours.
The Little House on the Prairie
From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
Little Blue and Little
Hush
My Louisiana Sky
Charlotte’s Web
A Wrinkle in Time
A Swiftly Tilting Planet
The Prince and the Pauper
Where the Sidewalk Ends
George Shrinks