This is an Online Internet Book Club on Earthly Joys: A Novel (Earthly Joys) by Philippa Gregory. Discuss this book, share your thoughts, make comments, ask questions, offer responses...
Description
Whether he is nurturing a single rare seedling into a blossoming tree or planning acres of exquisitely conceived royal gardens, John Tradescant's fame and skill as a gardener are unsurpassed in seventeenth-century England. But it is Tradescant's clear-sighted honesty and loyalty that make him an invaluable servant, and in his role as informal confidant during garden strolls with Sir Robert Cecil, adviser to King James I, he witnesses the making of history, from the Gunpowder Plot to the accession of King Charles I and the growing animosity between Parliament and court.
Tradescant's talents soon come to the attention of the most powerful man in the country, the irresistible Duke of Buckingham, the lover of King Charles I. Tradescant has always been faithful to his masters, but Buckingham is unlike any he has ever known: flamboyant, outrageously charming, and utterly reckless. Every certainty upon which Tradescant has based his life -- his love of his wife and children, his passion for his work, his loyalty to his country -- is shattered as he follows Buckingham to court, to war, and to the forbidden territories of human love.
From the details of garden design and innovation to the politics of a growing revolution which was to kill a king and turn a world upside down, Philippa Gregory once again makes history come alive through the people whose passions shaped that world.
Book Club Questions for Earthly Joys (Fiction)
Suggested Book Club Questions for Earthly Joys: A Novel (Earthly Joys) (Fiction)
The following book club questions provide a starting point for creating a reading group discussion on Earthly Joys:
- Did Philippa Gregory emphasize any specific themes throughout Earthly Joys? What do you think Philippa Gregory is trying to explain with this theme?
- What was unique about the setting of Earthly Joys and how did it affect the storyline?
- Could you relate to any of the characters? If so, which ones and why?
- How do characters change or learn throughout Earthly Joys? What events caused these changes? Have you or someone you know experienced the same thing?
- How does Earthly Joys reveal Philippa Gregory's own perspectives about people and the world? For a lively discussion, describe why you think Philippa Gregory is liberal or conservative.
- Did certain parts of Earthly Joys affect you emotionally? Why did it evoke those emotions?
- Did Philippa Gregory's point of view on things lend new perspective to your own view of the world?
Book Club Questions for Earthly Joys (for Non-Fiction)
Suggested Book Club Questions for Earthly Joys: A Novel (Earthly Joys) (Non-fiction)
The following book club questions provide a starting point for creating a reading group discussion on Earthly Joys:
- Did Philippa Gregory make persuasive arguments in Earthly Joys? Did Earthly Joys change or reinforce your opinion on the subject?
- What did you learn from Earthly Joys?
- How does Philippa Gregory present the information and did you enjoy it?
- How is Philippa Gregory biased within Earthly Joys? Is there a political slant to what is being discussed and how does it impact the book?
- What, if anything, does Earthly Joys make you want to read next? Why?
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