This month’s FYA Book Club selection is Far from the Tree by Robin Benway. Check out the discussion questions below! (Slight spoilers ahead.)
P.S. If you’ve already read the book, feel free to add any other discussion questions of your own in the comments!
Icebreaker
Have you ever looked into your own family history — through research, ancestry tests, or other means?
Questions
1. Benway touches on a lot of heavy topics throughout the course of the novel: teen pregnancy, adoption, fostering, alcoholism, to name a few. Do you think she was able to give each one enough room to breathe?
2. Which sibling did you connect with the most? The least?
3. Before Joaquin revealed why his adoption with the Buchanans fell through, what did you think he had done that he thought was unforgivable?
4. Does Maya’s relationship with Lauren provide a noticeable contrast to those with her newfound siblings?
5. Maya often thought of her feelings as colors. Do you think she was simply being imaginative, or do you think the author was describing a form of synesthesia (a condition of one sense being simultaneously perceived by an additional sense)? Have you ever experienced anything similar?
6. Did the portrayal of Grace’s teen pregnancy and the aftermath feel realistic and sympathetic?
7. Did the novel successfully cover a breadth of concerns that kids who have been adopted or fostered might have? Was there anything else that you wanted it to address?
8. Grace wants to find her birth mom after going through her own experience giving up Peach. Did you think the siblings would find her? Were you satisfied with the way things turned out?
9. What did you think of the adoptive parents? (How awesome are Mark and Linda?!?) Did you find yourself relating more to the parents or the kids, or did that shift depending on the situation?
10. Did you think the romantic relationships were necessary/beneficial to the book? Which couple did you find most compelling?
11. What did you think about the role of therapy in the novel?
