If you have read Poppy or Cat as a book club choice or in the classroom, here are some questions to get a rousing discussion started!
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR THE POWER OF POPPY PENDLE
Why don’t Poppy’s parents listen to her when she tries telling them she doesn’t want to be a witch?
Do you think Poppy’s parents are bad parents? Are there times in the book when they show Poppy that they do care about her?
Do you have a passion that you would like to try and follow?
At the end of the book why do Poppy’s parents take longer to turn back from stone than anyone else?
Why does Mr. Pendle change back before Edith?
What are the differences between Charlie’s parents and Poppy’s parents? How do they parent their daughter’s differently?
What role does Marie Claire play in the book?
Was Marie Claire right to take Poppy in when Poppy runs away?
Why does Poppy feel a connection with Madeline Reynolds?
Who is the true hero of this book?
Knowing how much Poppy hates magic, how would she feel if she had a child who got the magic gene? What kind of a parent would Poppy make? Do you think the way she was parented would make a difference to her own parenting?
After imagining the answers to those questions, you can read The Courage of Cat Campbell and find out.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR THE COURAGE OF CAT CAMPBELL
In what way is Cat similar to Poppy? How is she different?
Would you say that Cat has a good relationship with her mother? If so, why?
Do you think Poppy was right to have kept her past from Cat for so long? Should she have told her why she hated magic sooner?
In chapter nineteen Poppy takes away her old magic books when she discovers Cat has been using them to practice magic. Cat is furious with her mother. Is this as bad as Edith and Roger taking away the oven in their house when Poppy was little so she couldn’t bake? Do you think Poppy had a right to confiscate the magic books?
Cat gets extremely angry with her mother after she takes away the magic books. How is this anger different to the anger Poppy felt towards her own parents growing up?
Are Edith and Roger good grandparents?
The message for this book is ‘don’t let fear stand in your way.’ At one point in the story Clara Bell admits to Cat that when she was at college she got an F in her potions exam, and although she really wanted to be a potions teacher, she was too scared to retake the exam in case she failed again. Has there ever been a time when fear stopped you from doing something? If yes, do you have regrets?
Do you think Madeline Reynolds is genuinely evil? Can you forgive her for washing away half of Italy? Were her reasons for doing this understandable? When she comes back from the dark side at the end of the book, do you still think she should be sent back to Scrubs?
How does Peter and Cat’s relationship change throughout the book?
Who do you think is the hero of this book?
The title of the book is The Courage of Cat Campbell. In what ways does Cat show courage throughout the story?
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR THE POWER OF POPPY PENDLE
Why don’t Poppy’s parents listen to her when she tries telling them she doesn’t want to be a witch?
Do you think Poppy’s parents are bad parents? Are there times in the book when they show Poppy that they do care about her?
Do you have a passion that you would like to try and follow?
At the end of the book why do Poppy’s parents take longer to turn back from stone than anyone else?
Why does Mr. Pendle change back before Edith?
What are the differences between Charlie’s parents and Poppy’s parents? How do they parent their daughter’s differently?
What role does Marie Claire play in the book?
Was Marie Claire right to take Poppy in when Poppy runs away?
Why does Poppy feel a connection with Madeline Reynolds?
Who is the true hero of this book?
Knowing how much Poppy hates magic, how would she feel if she had a child who got the magic gene? What kind of a parent would Poppy make? Do you think the way she was parented would make a difference to her own parenting?
After imagining the answers to those questions, you can read The Courage of Cat Campbell and find out.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR THE COURAGE OF CAT CAMPBELL
In what way is Cat similar to Poppy? How is she different?
Would you say that Cat has a good relationship with her mother? If so, why?
Do you think Poppy was right to have kept her past from Cat for so long? Should she have told her why she hated magic sooner?
In chapter nineteen Poppy takes away her old magic books when she discovers Cat has been using them to practice magic. Cat is furious with her mother. Is this as bad as Edith and Roger taking away the oven in their house when Poppy was little so she couldn’t bake? Do you think Poppy had a right to confiscate the magic books?
Cat gets extremely angry with her mother after she takes away the magic books. How is this anger different to the anger Poppy felt towards her own parents growing up?
Are Edith and Roger good grandparents?
The message for this book is ‘don’t let fear stand in your way.’ At one point in the story Clara Bell admits to Cat that when she was at college she got an F in her potions exam, and although she really wanted to be a potions teacher, she was too scared to retake the exam in case she failed again. Has there ever been a time when fear stopped you from doing something? If yes, do you have regrets?
Do you think Madeline Reynolds is genuinely evil? Can you forgive her for washing away half of Italy? Were her reasons for doing this understandable? When she comes back from the dark side at the end of the book, do you still think she should be sent back to Scrubs?
How does Peter and Cat’s relationship change throughout the book?
Who do you think is the hero of this book?
The title of the book is The Courage of Cat Campbell. In what ways does Cat show courage throughout the story?
