Interview with Trevor Noah: Coates conversation with Trevor Noah is entertaining while simultaneously offering questions that are ideal for a book group to discuss. If you have time, watch some or all of the interviews as a group and take pausing points to reflect on your perspective. The discussion topics below are drawn from these- so you can both listen to and read to get your own reflection started. In both the following interviews- one short, one long- the viewer gets to know Ta-Nehisi Coates, his humility, his insight, his connections between his writing and life today. In addition, I found Coates' portrayal of Hiram's view of women very relevant to today and in turn Coates seems to just as accurately share the female sentiments- their bonds to their children, their strength and their strongly held belief to not ever belong to any man, even one who is Tasked. These terms reinforced for me the hierarchy the Quality created, much of which still exists today. I saw the social stratum reinforced through these proper nouns that highlight the systemic constraints that limit individuals’ movement beyond their prescribed place. I appreciated how Coates delineated the human strata, the caste system, that dictates every aspect of the lives of the Tasked, the Quality and Ryland's Hounds. I loved this book because it interweaved historical events with magical realism- if magical realism isn't your thing then you may be less inclined to enjoy this novel.
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