Belonging and connection molly ayer and vivian daly, two women born in different places and eras and who were orphaned as young children, both. She served as writerinresidence at fordham university from 2007 to 2011 and. Special 26m 55s between 1854 and 1929, socalled orphan trains ran regularly from the cities of the east coast to the farmlands of the midwest or face a childhood. Orphan train book club ideas part 1 book club books. Its dorothys birthday, shes living with the miserable, dysfunctional grote. Orphan train themes from litcharts the creators of sparknotes.
The nightingale, kristin hannah, the nightingale book club, delicious reads, the nightingale. Orphan train by christina baker kline is a book that has many themes. Portaging in this novel, the theme of portaging takes on both literal and symbolic meanings. Therefore in nine years she hasmoved all of her things twelve times. Over a 75year period, up to 200,000 indigent children went from city to farm. For example, both molly and vivian have literally moved many times, taking all of their belongings with them. See more ideas about orphan train, orphan train book and orphan. A selection for the 2016 prestwick house summer reading book club. In 2011, eighty years after she was shipped west on an orphan train, vivian daly meets the seventeenyearold foster child, molly ayer. Christina baker klines orphan train is an unforgettable story of friendship and second chances that highlights a littleknown but historically significant movement in americas pastand it includes a special ps section for book.
During the era of the orphan trains, up to a quarter of a million orphaned, neglected or abandoned children were removed. Lesson plans and resources for orphan train free library of. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Linebyline modern translations of every shakespeare play and poem. Fall book club menu book club menu, book club food. Orphan train themes from litcharts the creators of. Apr 11, 2014 online resources and questions for your book club to connect your groups lives, interests and personal experiences to books you discuss, friday, april 11, 2014 orphan train book discussion guide. Elizabeth begins her journey of self discovery with gastronomic delights in italy, so consider starting your book club discussion with a menu she would have relished. Oct 20, 2014 i love when i find a winner with my book club and this is definitely a winner. Christina baker klines latest wonder, orphan train, makes for compulsive reading. Find related themes, quotes, symbols, characters, and more.
My step mother is half irish and has spoken of the bias towards the irish before, but i never learned about it in school. Molly, half indian, has stolen a library book and is. Niamh pronounced neev was an irish immigrant girl sent on an orphan train from new york city to minnesota in the late 1920s. Girls night in book club menu ideas below are some great ideas for book club menus submitted by my wonderful readers. Orphan train on surprise trip up the bestseller list. A treasure trove of information and links relating to orphan train from which many of the other links on.
In chapters of alternating perspectives, this novel about memory, possibility, and transformation. Between 1854 and 1929, socalled orphan trains transported more than 200,000 orphaned, abandoned, and homeless children many of them firstgeneration irish catholic. Adapted and condensed for a young audience, orphan train girl includes an authors note and archival photos from the orphan train era. Aug 18, 2018 the orphan train by christina baker kline moves back and forth between two stories that of a young orphan girl in the early twentieth century and that of a teenager in the modernday foster care system. Molly reports that the thibodeaus are her twelfth foster family. There is the theme of foster care, adoption, family history, unexpected. Orphan train is a specifically american story of mobility and rootlessness, highlighting a littleknown but historically significant moment in our countrys past. Book club kit discussion guide orphan train by christina. I love the idea of having a monthly book club theme. Thanks goes out to those that sent in their favorites and i hope that you can now get some great ideas for your next book club gathering.
Answer questions on topics such as an approximate number of homeless kids in new york city during the. Online resources and questions for your book club to connect your groups lives, interests and personal experiences to books you discuss, friday. Between 1854 and 1929, socalled orphan trains ran regularly from the cities of the east coast to the farmlands of the midwest, carrying thousands of abandoned children whose. The orphan train by christina baker kline moves back and forth between two stories that of a young orphan girl in the early twentieth century. Christina baker kline is a novelist, nonfiction writer and editor. Book description courtesy of goodreads from pulitzer prizewinner katherine boo, a landmark work of narrative nonfiction that tells the dramatic and sometimes heartbreaking story of families striving toward a better life in one of the twentyfirst centurys great, unequal cities. In the prologue vivian mentions that her true love died when she was 23, but she doesnt mention the other big secret in the book. Litcharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in orphan train, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work. Orphan train recipes for book clubs tosas allcity read. Read the orphan train twins, and their white horse dream by j. Orphan train is a book set in both the present day and the late 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s. She was deposited with the byrnes, who wanted only child labor in a dressmaking enterprise.
We are recommending all meal trains utilize restaurant or contactfree delivery when providing support during covid19. Baker kline, christina, almasy, jessica, toren, suzanne. These book discussion questions are highly detailed and will ruin plot points if you have not read the book. A basic synopsis of the plot key educational objectives for the book warnings on violence, alcohol and drug use, and sexual content literary elements and techniques to address important themes and motifs related works to pair with the book descriptions of film versions useful external resources elements. Author says the novel appeals to readers looking for a book they can talk about. Orphan train symbols from litcharts the creators of sparknotes. The 35 children who gathered at new yorks childrens aid. Orphan train tackles some pretty heavy themes, such as finding family and figuring out your identity. Definitions and examples of 301 literary terms and devices. Although this particular story of molly and vivian is fictional, the orphan trains were real, and a piece of history i had never heard of.
How perfect was it to put the toy train around the food. A highly theatrical story, moving, amusing, and always tellingly human of nine orphans on an orphan train that left new york city on may 28, 1914, and traveled to midwestern towns in search of homes for the children. Book club questions for the orphan train by christina baker. A lot of the women in this group liked the book along with our strong male contingency of one but not as much as i did. Orphan train historical background from the authors website. On the surface, vivians and mollys lives couldnt be more different. Some of the food ideas are from the book like the terrys famous chowder but most of this book took place during the great depression so food was scarce and there was no way i was. But in interviews, and on her blog, kline says one of the major themes she wanted to tackle. Any, or all, of these recipes would be suitable for the book club that focuses on dessert. Meticulously researched and yet full of the breath of life. Palacio including a sack lunch food swap orphan train bookready player. Food ideas for wonder by rj palacio book club food, book club. Vivians journey west was aboard an orphan train, a bit of misguided 1900sera social engineering moving homeless, destitute city children, mostly immigrants, into midwest families.
Christina baker klines orphan train is an unforgettable story of friendship and second chances that highlights a littleknown but historically significant movement in americas pastand it includes a special ps section for book clubs featuring insights, interviews, and more. A novel christina baker kline, 20 harpercollins 278 pp. Gail martin is joined by cohost rebecca kubacki to discuss the fates of the children looking for a new home in orphan train by christina. Her vegetarian diet was only one thing about her that her foster parents, especially her impossibletoplease foster mother dina, refused to accept about her. Orphan trains brought homeless nyc children to work on. Rich in detail and epic in scope, orphan train by christina baker kline is a powerful novel of upheaval and resilience, of unexpected friendship, and of the secrets we carry that keep us from finding out who we are. Orphan train book club ideas part 1 have you read this incredible story about our history in america. Belonging and connection molly ayer and vivian daly, two women born in different places and eras and who were orphaned as young children, both struggle to find a sense of home and belonging. Orphan train by christina baker kline teen book ratings and. Orphan train is an unforgettable story, at times disturbing and painful, at other times hopeful and redemptive. Orphan train book club ideas part 2 delicious reads. I love when i find a winner with my book club and this is definitely a winner. A site dedicated to book lovers providing a forum to discover and share commentary about the books and authors they enjoy. Orphan train is a young adult historical fiction novel about the relationship between seventeen yearold molly ayer and ninetyone yearold vivian daly who, as the result of spending time together and sharing their experiences, form a bond, learn from each other, and change in significant ways.
Determine two or more themes or central ideas of a text and analyze their development over the course of the text. Today, we welcome christina to the blog to discuss her experience with book clubs and the three most common questions that clubs have asked her about the novel. Questions every book club asks, the story behind the writing of orphan train, and more. Orphan train historical background christina baker kline. One week molly took over the kitchen and made her kind of food. I had no idea that this happened with orphans in america. Your book club could also go veggie in honor of molly. Content includes books from bestselling, midlist and debut authors.
It of course was a sad story, so there were definitely tears. Orphan train was a mix of favorite childhood books of mine such as anne of green gables, heidi, and understood betsy, and ms. Discover how much you comprehend about the orphan train movement. Moving between contemporary maine and depressionera minnesota, orphan train is a powerful novel of upheaval and resilience, of second chances, and unexpected friendship. May 23, 2014 information about orphan trains and the book, orphan train by christina baker kline. Christina baker klines novel orphan train has ridden the new york times bestseller list for the past 15 weeks, becoming a favorite of book clubs across the country. Vivian traveled from nyc to minnesota as a young girl on one of the infamous orphan trains that was used to get orphans out of the cities into the country where they might have a better opportunity to find families and to be able to make a good life. Orphan train by christina baker kline book club discussion. Albans, minnesota, 1929 pages 6974 summary the train, carrying niamh and about half a dozen other orphans, arrives in the small town of albans. The first concerns a frustrated, angry teen who has been bounced around the foster care system from one uncaring home to another, unloved and generally unwanted. See more ideas about orphan train, orphan and train. Some of the food ideas are from the book like the terrys famous chowder but most of this book took place during the great depression so food was scarce and there was no way i was eating squirrel as the main dish. Answer questions on topics such as an approximate number. There is the theme of foster care, adoption, family history, unexpected relationships, inhumane acts of violence and of course the train that took children from large cities to be adopted by families in the midwest to be more like indentured servants then a part of a new family.
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