Encompassing the brutalities of the Vietnam war, government cover-ups, love, sisterhood and conflicts of the heart, Kristin Hannah’s The Women presents an immersive account of pivotal moments in history while also sharing the intimate story of one woman’s coming-of-age, through to her later years.
As such, it’s a wonderful novel to dive into at your book club discussions, not least if you and your book-loving friends love to mix meaty subjects with page-turning tales of romance.
From the outset, when we meet young army nurse Frankie in 1966, The Women provokes thoughts on the daily lives of women during that era, and how it was to risk one’s life in the war when most folk back home were under the impression that there were no women in Vietnam. Above all, it’s suffused in the truth that “Women can be heroes, too”, while also being a page-turning story of romantic love and life-changing friendship.
Be warned – the following suggested book club questions contain spoilers, so stop right now if you haven’t yet read the novel!
1. Discuss the book’s title. Did it deliver what you expected of a book called The Women?
2. How did you feel about Frankie’s parents’ hailing her brother a hero but lying about where she was, and not recognising her as such?
3. Did your views of Frankie’s parents change through the course of the novel? For example, after her mother’s stroke, when they gift Frankie “a place to call her own.” Why did it take Frankie’s father so long to recognise her as a hero?
4. What role does coincidence, or fate, play in Frankie’s story?
5. What does the novel reveal about female friendship bonds?
6. Discus Barb’s character. Did you relate to her personal journey? What role does she play in Frankie’s journey?
7. “They men here, they lie and they die,” Frankie’s friend Ethel warns early in Frankie’s first tour of duty in Vietnam. Were you shocked when Rye returned from Vietnam after being presumed dead? Were you shocked when Frankie saw he’d lied to her?
8. How did you feel when Frankie called off her wedding to Henry?
9. How did you feel when Frankie followed Rye? Did you want him to turn around and see her? Why does Frankie keep their relationship a secret from Barb and Ethel? And were you surprised when it emerged Rye was having a second child with his wife?
10. Discuss Frankie’s statement that, “In some ways, the war years were the best of my life”.
11. Have your views on the Vietnam war changed as a result of reading The Women? Did you learn anything from reading the novel?
12. Discuss the portrayal of being on service in Vietnam, and PTSD.
13. Is The Women a feminist novel?
14. Will you recommend The Women to your book-loving friends?
Want more book club ideas? Browse our book club recommendations category, and explore more discussion questions.
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