In a book club and starting to plan your reads for next year? Check out our 2025 picks.

Book Club Discussion Questions for Sky Full of Elephants by Cebo Campbell

Summary |  Excerpt |  Reading Guide |  Reviews |  Beyond the Book |  Read-Alikes |  Genres & Themes |  Author Bio

Sky Full of Elephants by Cebo Campbell

Sky Full of Elephants

A Novel

by Cebo Campbell
  • BookBrowse Review:
  • Critics' Consensus:
  • First Published:
  • Sep 10, 2024, 304 pages
  • Rate this book

  • Buy This Book

About this Book

Book Club Discussion Questions

Print PDF

Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!

  1. How do Charlie and Sidney's initial feelings towards each other reflect larger themes of family and identity in the novel? Discuss their relationship dynamics and how these evolve over the course of their journey.
  2. Sidney's isolation and fear of the outside world are profound. Discuss the psychological impact of her experiences and how they mirror or contrast with societal issues of isolation, trauma, and recovery.
  3. Explore the significance of Charlie being a professor of electric and solar power systems at Howard University. How does his profession and its focus on sustainability and renewal metaphorically relate to the themes of rebuilding and transformation in the story?
  4. The novel takes us through a cross-country journey yet focuses on a deeply personal narrative of a Black father and his daughter. How does the novel balance the macro (societal changes) with the micro (individual experiences) in its exploration of race and identity?
  5. How are the themes of community and connection manifested in the story, and what message does the novel convey about community and healing?
  6. Consider the role of the Kingdom of Alabama in the story. What does this setting symbolize, and how does it affect the characters' understanding of their world and themselves?
  7. Discuss the concept of a reckoning with what it means to be Black in America as portrayed in the novel. How does the book address this reckoning in both the alternate reality it creates and in reflections on our real world?
  8. The cataclysmic event that leads to a post-racial America is a bold narrative choice. What are your thoughts on how this event shapes the society depicted in the novel? Does it offer a critique, hope, or a warning about our current societal structures?
  9. Reflecting on the novel's ending, discuss the prospects of healing and self-actualization for Charlie, Sidney, and the society they inhabit. What vision of the future does the novel propose for its characters and for America?


Unless otherwise stated, this discussion guide is reprinted with the permission of Simon & Schuster. Any page references refer to a USA edition of the book, usually the trade paperback version, and may vary in other editions.

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Top Picks

  • Book Jacket: The Puzzle Box
    The Puzzle Box
    by Danielle Trussoni
    During the tumultuous last days of the Tokugawa shogunate, a 17-year-old emperor known as Meiji ...
  • Book Jacket
    Something, Not Nothing
    by Sarah Leavitt
    In 2020, after a lifetime of struggling with increasingly ill health, Sarah Leavitt's partner, ...
  • Book Jacket
    A Haunting in Hialeah Gardens
    by Raul Palma
    Raul Palma's debut novel A Haunting in Hialeah Gardens introduces Hugo Contreras, who came to the ...
  • Book Jacket
    The MANIAC
    by Benjamin Labatut
    The MANIAC by Benjamin Labatut is an ambitious work that falls squarely into the category of fiction...

Members Recommend

  • Book Jacket

    Pony Confidential
    by Christina Lynch

    In this whimsical mystery, a grumpy pony must clear his beloved human's name from a murder accusation.

Who Said...

Failure is the condiment that gives success its flavor

Click Here to find out who said this, as well as discovering other famous literary quotes!

Wordplay

Solve this clue:

H I O the G

and be entered to win..

Your guide toexceptional          books

BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.