35 pages • 1 hour read
Jen WangStargazing
Fiction | Graphic Novel/Book | Middle Grade | Published in 2019A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Essay Topics
How are Moon and Christine different from one another? What draws them toward each other, and why do they get along so well despite their differences?
How do different characters in the novel struggle with forming an identity? How do both Christine and Moon feel about themselves as people, and how do their self-perceptions change throughout the novel?
How do friendship and community—or lack thereof—impact the characters? Use specific examples from the text to support your argument.
What role does food play in the Asian American community that Christine and Moon are a part of? How does food bring the story’s characters together?
How do the novel’s illustrations work alongside the text to build characterization, convey the novel’s themes, and propel the story forward? How might this story have been different if it were a regular novel, or a movie?
Why are Moon and Christine both so interested in music? How does music bring the girls together and what does each of their choices in musical artists say about them as people?
How does Christine and Moon’s friendship act as a tool for Bridging the Cultural Divide between their two worlds? Why does Christine initially judge Moon before knowing her, and what helps her overcome this?
What tone does Wang take when addressing serious issues like financial struggle and illness? Pick another middle grade book that grapples with similar issues, and compare and contrast their treatment in each text.
What flaws does Wang give her characters? How does she prevent these flaws from making her characters unlikeable?
Why does Moon feel upset about the fact that she no longer has the visions that were caused by her tumor? What led Moon to become so attached to them in the first place?
