This novel is in many ways a straightforward read for high school students. As a result, it is important for the instructor to emphasize the subtle qualities of the writing that make this work such a tour de force - the use of free-indirect style, the slow timeline and the use of flashbacks, etc. It is also important to highlight what goes largely unspoken in the novel, namely the Holocaust that ended just a decade before and the current oppression faced by Black Americans.
These lessons and activities provide many different approaches to the text; select those that best suit the strengths and interests of your own class. The thought questions in this lesson plan provide material and...
