Nomadland Film and Book Discussion Questions Free Instant Download

TITLE: Nomadland

SUBTITLE: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century

AUTHOR: Jessica Bruder
AUTHOR'S WEBSITE: https://www.jessicabruder.com/bio  
GENRE: Gerontology Social Sciences, Economic Conditions (Books), US Travel Guide 
PAGES: 288
PUBLISHER: Norton
Link to Amazon

Nomadland: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century was written by Jessica Bruder. Made into an award-winning film, it shows a van-dwelling working nomad named Fern. Fern lost her husband and home when the company town shut down. She started traveling to find work. Written, edited, produced, and directed by Chloé Zhao, it stars Frances McDormand as Fern. I find it so interesting that McDormand also helped produce the film after living in a camper van and interviewing itinerant Americans. I rented it on YouTube, as I don't have Hulu.

Click this link for your free instant PDF download with the questions

The story is loosely based on true events regarding the company town of Empire, Nevada. United States Gypsum closed the mine and the town in 2011. People with children were allowed to stay through the end of the school year. Empire mining bought the company in 2016, reopening part of the operations and homes. I love stories based on real events. 

Film Discussion Questions

Book Discussion Questions

The book was nonfiction. Did it seem like it would be nonfiction if the movie was watched first? Some people may have been surprised. The author, Jessica Bruder, certainly went to great lengths to interview nomads, stayed in the campground with them, and even worked with them. She realized she always had the choice to leave the lifestyle where they did not have such a choice. 

Thank you for reading, Carolyn Wilhelm, Wise Owl Factory LLC

Carolyn Wilhelm is the author and sole owner of The Wise Owl Factory LLC site and blog. She has a BS in Elementary Education, an MS in Gifted Education, an MA in Curriculum and Instruction K-12, and has completed the KHT Montessori 12 month program. She makes mostly free resources for teachers and parents. Her children's books are available on Amazon. She was a public school teacher for 28 years. She writes for The New Book Review and Sharing with Writers and Readers.

News of the World Book and Movie Discussion Questions Free Guide

News of the World Book and Movie Discussion Questions Free Guide 

• Author: Paulette Jiles
• Publisher: William Morrow
• Language: English
• Hardcover: 224 pages
• ISBN-10: 0062409204
• ISBN-13: 978-0062409201
• Pages: 224

Oh, this book made quite an impression on me and I cannot stop thinking about it. I had no idea the situation this story presents happened many times. Let's just say a child taken from her family for years, and is then returned, but her parents are dead. The story takes place five years after the end of the Civil War. The hero, Captain Kidd, fought in two wars and lived through the third. He raised two daughters and felt his parenting days were over. He promises to take a girl back to her aunt and uncle which requires traveling 400 miles through dangerous territory. It was indeed the wild west at that time, and they face dangers and unpleasant conditions. 

First, please note the book does have some discussion questions in the back. Those may be preferable. Here are a few more possible questions. 

Click this link for a free instant download PDF with the questions for the book and movie. 

The author adds a note about a book by Scott Zesch's book, The Captured. What was the astounding information she included? Do you think that book would be interesting? Why or why not? 

The movie was very different from the book. Many details were changed. Here are the movie questions, without giving away too much in the way of spoilers. It had basically the same ideas as the book, with different details. 

I hope you find the story as interesting as I did! 

Thank you for reading, 

Carolyn Wilhelm

Carolyn Wilhelm is the author and sole owner of The Wise Owl Factory LLC site and blog. She has a BS in Elementary Education, an MS in Gifted Education, an MA in Curriculum and Instruction K-12, and has completed the KHT Montessori 12 month program. She makes mostly free resources for teachers and parents. Her children's books are available on Amazon. She was a public school teacher for 28 years. She writes for The New Book Review and Sharing with Writers and Readers.

More About #TheNewBookReview Blog The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. Authors, readers, publishers, and reviewers may republish their favorite reviews of books they want to share with others. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read and love. Please see submission guidelines in a tab at the top of this blog's home page or go directly to the submission guidelines at http://bit.ly/ThePlacetoRecycleBookReviews or to the guideline tab at the top of the home page of this blog. Authors and publishers who do not yet have reviews or want more may use Lois W. Stern's "Authors Helping Authors" service for requesting reviews. Find her guidelines in a tab at the top of the home page, too. Carolyn Wilhelm is our IT expert, an award-winning author, a veteran educator and also contributes reviews and posts on other topics related to books. Reviews, interviews, and articles on this blog are indexed by genre, reviewers' names, and review sites so #TheNewBookReview may be used as a resource for most anyone in the publishing industry. As an example, writers will find this blog's search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. #TheFrugalbookPromoter, #CarolynHowardJohnson, #TheNewBookReview, #TheFrugalEditor, #SharingwithWriters, #reading #BookReviews #GreatBkReviews #BookMarketing

Hidden Figures Book and Movie Discussion Guide

Hidden Figures Book and Movie Discussion Guide 

Free PDF Instant Download with the questions

Note: The movie may be rented on Amazon Prime. It is not on Netflix or Hulu. I do not see a way to watch it free or included in subscription plans other than Disney Plus. I watched it on Disney Plus. 

The movie is a fictionalized version of the nonfiction book and is about 74% accurate. 

Movie Questions

1. The opening scene looks like there may be trouble for the three women when their car broke down in the middle of nowhere. How did the situation resolve? What did you learn about Dorothy Johnson Vaughn to help foreshadow her promotion at work? 

2. NASA was divided into the West and East work areas. In what ways were they segregated? 

3. A library book became the catalyst for worker empowerment. How did this one book contribute to the computer revolution? How was the book obtained? How far did it reach? 

4. Explain the attitudes of the men who were engineers towards other workers. How did these attitudes evolve during the story? 

5. Math was empowering to the main characters. Why? How? Do you think it is still so important?

6. The home lives of the main characters were also shown. How did this help humanize the story against a backdrop of technology and precision? 

7. The movie was set in 1961-62 when civil rights activists were working and demonstrating. How did the film reflect the reasons why changes were needed in society at large? 

8. The movie was about 74% factual. A court order was not needed for one person to attend high school (after receiving a Bachelor's Degree). What were other elements of the movie exaggerated for dramatic effect? 

9. The IBM computer was necessary at that time. Explain how it helped with integration. 

10. Discuss some of your favorite scenes or people in the movie. Tell why you especially liked those. 

Title: Hidden Figures: The Untold Story of the African American Women Who Helped Win the Space Race
Author: Margot Lee Shetterly
Publisher: William Collins
Publisher Website Address: https://corporate.harpercollins.co.uk/
Publisher Email Address: 4thestate.publicity@harpercollins.co.uk

ISBN-10: 0062363603

ISBN-13: 978-0062363602

ASIN: B01MYUTJR7
Price: $9.98 Paperback, $Hardcover $21.99, $12.99 Audio Book, $6.99 Kindle
Page Count: 368 pages
Formats: (PB, Hardcover, Audio Book, Kindle)

The book Hidden Figures: The Untold Story of the African American Women Who Helped Win the Space Race is nothing like the movie. It is more like a textbook with scientific information about aviation and civil rights. The author demonstrates how segregation at NACA (now NASA) compared and contrasted to civil rights issues of the larger society. The book would be a fantastic resource for civil rights studies as it is all nonfiction. People interested in aviation would also find reasons to consult this book in studies of flight. 

The book does include discussion questions at the end. A book club or discussion group could consult the questions to foster discussion. Here are my questions regarding the book, which are different from the authors. I suggest using the author's questions.

Book Discussion Questions

1. The opening scene looks like there may be trouble for the three women when their car broke down in the middle of nowhere. How did the situation resolve? What did you learn about Dorothy Johnson Vaughn to help foreshadow her promotion at work? 

2. NASA was divided into the West and East work areas. In what ways were they segregated? 

3. A library book became the catalyst for worker empowerment. How did this one book contribute to the computer revolution? How was the book obtained? How far did it reach? 

4. Explain the attitudes of the men who were engineers towards other workers. How did these attitudes evolve during the story? 

5. Math was empowering to the main characters. Why? How? Do you think it is still so important?

6. The home lives of the main characters were also shown. How did this help humanize the story against a backdrop of technology and precision? 

7. The movie was set in 1961-62 when civil rights activists were working and demonstrating. How did the film reflect the reasons why changes were needed in society at large? 

8. The movie was about 74% factual. A court order was not needed for one person to attend high school (after receiving a Bachelor's Degree). What were other elements of the movie exaggerated for dramatic effect? 

9. The IBM computer was necessary at that time. Explain how it helped with integration. 

10. Discuss some of your favorite scenes or people in the movie. Tell why you especially liked those. 

Thank you for reading, Carolyn

More About #TheNewBookReview Blog The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. Authors, readers, publishers, and reviewers may republish their favorite reviews of books they want to share with others. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read and love. Please see submission guidelines in a tab at the top of this blog's home page or go directly to the form at https://www.bit.ly/FinishedReviewSubmissions. Authors and publishers who do not yet have reviews or want more may use Lois W. Stern's "Authors Helping Authors" service for requesting reviews. Find her guidelines in a tab at the top of the home page, too. And know that Carolyn Wilhelm, our IT expert, award-winning author, and veteran educator, makes an award image especially for those who volunteer to write reviews from Lois's review-request list and post them in the spirit of her "Authors Helping Authors" project. Reviews, interviews, and articles on this blog are indexed by genre, reviewers' names, and review sites so #TheNewBookReview may be used as a resource for most anyone in the publishing industry. As an example, writers will find this blog's search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor. #TheFrugalbookPromoter, #CarolynHowardJohnson, #TheNewBookReview, #TheFrugalEditor, #SharingwithWriters, #reading #BookReviews #GreatBkReviews #BookMarketing