When the leaves start to change color and the temperature drops, when pumpkins and apples rule every roadside market and suddenly orange is everyone’s favorite color, … one can’t help but think of autumn. Of color and beauty and abundance but also of the coming winter and full moons and stark branches. It can be a bit spooky, and anything that draws strong emotions just begs for a story. Especially when it’s a whole season.
That’s why Strange Star is the perfect autumn read for your middle-school classroom or your family. It’s great for book clubs – that’s where I taught it – or in lit class or for a student choice read. It’s a fast-paced adventure story that will engage your students immediately.
Because it’s the imagined backstory to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.
How did she write that story, anyway? What prompted a woman to tell a tale of corpses and surgeries and scientific experiments gone awry? What made this young woman pen a tale of heartbreak and horror?
Emma Carroll’s imagined version is definitely a modern idea of what might have happened – but that’s part of what makes it so great. It’s a colorful tale of adventure, of a diverse cast of characters considering what if: What if I could have saved that baby? What if people had the power to reverse death? What if, despite my history and reputation, I can be different? What if my past didn’t dictate my future? What if a person’s gender or skin color doesn’t define who they are or what they can do? What if society’s norms can be changed?
Carroll’s story is a work of historical fiction at its best: it acknowledges historical ideas and cultural norms but puts characters in place who challenge them in ways that fit the parameters of the story. It’s based on real science and real history, so it’s meaty, but it involves folklore and crushes and scientific experiments and gossip and enough murderous intent to engage any student. Strange Star will prompt your students to challenge old ideas and encourage lively discussions and creative writing – and I enjoyed digging into this book so much that I made it a book club read for both of the groups I work with.
Our book clubbers chose to discuss this at night, in the country beside a roaring bonfire at the side of a pond, while we roasted hot dogs and made s’mores and generally got into the spooky groove of the whole thing. We enjoyed being able to consider kid and adult opinions alike – but whether you meet in a classroom or a campsite, your students will have a great time with this story.
That’s why I’m sharing these Discussion Questions and Creative Writing Prompts for Emma Carroll’s Strange Star.
This resource includes discussion questions sorted by chapter for teacher use and organized additionally with a single chapter’s questions per page for student use for cooperative learning, homework, or assessment. There are also essay questions and creative writing prompts, all designed to encourage interaction with the story and to demonstrate comprehension.
There is so much to dig into with Strange Star – I know you’ll have great conversations with it!
What are you reading this season?
