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Book club questions for California Golden by Melanie Benjamin explore the themes of female empowerment in a male-dominated world, the intricate dynamics of sisterhood, and the consequences of unconventional choices on family relationships.
This one of those rare novels that I knew I would read it again a third of the way in. I’ve already read the ending twice…it is so beautiful and moving. The author breaks the mold with every new book.
What were your impressions of this novel? ✨
California Golden by Melanie Benjamin
This blog post contains thoughtfully crafted book club questions tailored for California Golden. You can also access a downloadable PDF version designed for your book clubs (available at the bottom of the post), along with supplementary suggestions for books that share similar themes and narratives.
I hope you find these book club questions useful. I’m excited to hear your unique perspectives during your book club discussions.
Let me know your thoughts in the comment section!
Book Club Questions | Additional Recommendations | Printable List
About the Story
California Golden: A Novel follows the journey of two sisters amidst the vibrant California surf culture of the 1960s. Against the backdrop of endless sunny days in Malibu and neon nights at Whisky a Go Go, Carol Donnelly defies conventions as a pioneering female surfer.
Her daughters, Mindy and Ginger, grapple with the repercussions of her unconventional choices. Mindy excels in surfing, while Ginger feels like an outsider. As they navigate divergent paths, Mindy immerses herself in stardom and fleeting romances, including a USO tour in Vietnam, while Ginger seeks belonging in a risky counterculture of drugs and cults.
The sisters’ unbreakable bond, forged through their shared upbringing and emotional scars, anchors them even as societal shifts mirror the tumultuous waves of change in this gripping tale of ambition, sacrifice, and maternal ties.”
About the Author
Melanie Benjamin is a bestselling author known for her captivating historical novels.
Her works include “The Swans of Fifth Avenue,” centered around Truman Capote and his high-society circle, “The Aviator’s Wife,” a tale of Anne Morrow Lindbergh, and “Mistress of the Ritz,” based on the real-life story of an American woman managing the Ritz during WWII, aiding the Resistance while serving Nazi occupiers.
Hailing from the Midwest, Melanie started in theater before becoming a writer. She’s been featured in magazines like Good Housekeeping, and her novels, including “Alice I Have Been” and “The Girls in the Picture,” have been translated into over fifteen languages and optioned for films.
Melanie lives in Chicago and also contributes to the Authors Unbound speakers bureau, drawing from her theatrical training when she’s not reading or crafting new stories.
Book Club Questions for California Golden
1. California Golden delves into various themes like family, loyalty, ambition, and the tension between societal norms and personal desires. Which theme resonated the most with you, and what makes it personally significant?
2. The parents of Mindy and Ginger consistently involved them in their conflicts during their upbringing. How do you think this upbringing influenced Mindy and Ginger’s individual personalities? How does this influence play out in their lives as the story progresses?
3. Carol, despite having a caring husband and loving daughters, resisted conforming to traditional norms. Why do you think she held such resentment? Could she have taken a different path, and what might you have done in her situation?
4. Mindy and Ginger grow apart, leading drastically different lives. Why do you think they drifted away from each other? How might their lives have been altered if they had maintained their connection?
5. Despite the hardships Ginger faced and the lack of support, she remained attached to Tom, even though he treated her poorly. Why do you think she held onto this relationship?
6. How does this novel illustrate the nuances of love and friendship within a family context?
7. Ginger faces numerous challenges and struggles throughout the story. How does her attachment to Tom, despite his mistreatment, shed light on her character and motivations? How does her journey reflect the complexities of seeking love and belonging?
8. The novel depicts the shift in societal norms during the 1960s and 70s. How does the story illustrate the transformation of women’s roles and opportunities during this period? How do the characters’ experiences embody these changing dynamics?
9. California Golden is not only a tale of surfing but also a story of personal evolution and growth. How do Mindy and Ginger transform as individuals over time? What pivotal moments contribute to their development?
10. Is surfing used metaphorically in California Golden? If so, what might it symbolize?
11. If you were in Mindy’s situation and discovered your sister had a child with your partner, would you have reacted similarly to Mindy? Do you believe Mindy’s decision to raise the baby with Jimmy was the right one?
12. The Donnelly sisters were celebrated in the surfing community as the “Fabulous Donnelly Girls,” yet they seemed to overlook this recognition. What factors might contribute to their modest self-perception?
13. The Donnelly family dynamics play a significant role in shaping the characters’ lives. How does Carol’s restlessness and her decision to prioritize surfing over motherhood impact the trajectory of Mindy and Ginger’s lives? In what ways do you see the consequences of these decisions unfolding throughout the story?
14. Melanie Benjamin often situates her novels in historically significant contexts, and California Golden unfolds in the 1960s, a period marked by cultural shifts and events. How do you observe both positive and negative cultural changes at play within the story’s setting?
15. How do you feel about the story’s conclusion, and the final choices and resolutions for Mindy, Ginger, and Carol? What messages or themes do you feel the author is trying to convey through the conclusion?
Selected Reviews
“If you’re looking for a meticulously detailed breakdown of surf culture, look no further than Melanie Benjamin’s new novel . . . [a book] teeming with sand, sun, water, hot-pink bikinis and hamburger stands. . . . California Golden plants its feet firmly on the board and rides a powerful wave of nostalgia, eyes focused on the opportunities and dangers ahead.”—Los Angeles Times
“California Golden left me breathless. Against the shimmering backdrop of California’s burgeoning surf culture, Melanie Benjamin explores the bonds of sisterhood and motherhood in an era where society, and its expectations of women, are ever changing. The Donnelly women, perfect in their imperfections, will stay with you long after the last page.”—Shelby Van Pelt
“With the charm and nostalgia of Beth Harbison’s Confessions of the Other Sister and Amy Mason Doan’s Lady Sunshine, Benjamin’s novel also shows what the sun-kissed highlight reels so often missed.”—Booklist
Additional Recommendations
Hope you enjoyed the book club discussion questions and reading guide for California Golden by Melanie Benjamin!
Here are some more of my book club recommendations related to this book:
The Last Lifeboat by Hazel Gaynor
Inspired by a remarkable true story, a young teacher evacuates children to safety across perilous waters, in a moving and triumphant new novel from New York Times bestselling author Hazel Gaynor.
1940, Kent: Alice King is not brave or daring—she’s happiest finding adventure through the safe pages of books. But times of war demand courage, and as the threat of German invasion looms, a plane crash near her home awakens a strength in Alice she’d long forgotten. Determined to do her part, she finds a role perfectly suited to her experience as a schoolteacher—to help evacuate Britain’s children overseas.
1940, London: Lily Nichols once dreamed of using her mathematical talents for more than tabulating the cost of groceries, but life, and love, charted her a different course. With two lively children and a loving husband, Lily’s humble home is her world, until war tears everything asunder. With her husband gone and bombs raining down, Lily is faced with an impossible choice: keep her son and daughter close, knowing she may not be able to protect them, or enroll them in a risky evacuation scheme, where safety awaits so very far away.
When a Nazi U-boat torpedoes the S. S. Carlisle carrying a ship of children to Canada, a single lifeboat is left adrift in the storm-tossed Atlantic. Alice and Lily, strangers to each other—one on land, the other at sea—will quickly become one another’s very best hope as their lives are fatefully entwined.
The Blonde Identity by Ally Carter
The New York Times bestselling YA author of the beloved Gallagher Girls series bursts onto the adult scene with a fast-paced, hilarious road trip rom-com about a woman with amnesia who discovers she’s the identical twin sister of a rogue spy… and must team up with a rugged, grumpy operative to stay alive.
It’s the middle of the night in the middle of Paris and a woman just woke up with no memory.
She only knows three things for certain:
1. She has a splitting headache.
2. The hottest guy she has (probably) ever seen is standing over her, telling her to run.
And oh yeah…
3. People keep trying to kill her.
She doesn’t know who. Or why. But when she sees footage of herself fighting off a dozen men there’s only one explanation: obviously. . . she’s a spy!
Except, according to Mr. Hot Guy, she’s not. She’s a spy’s identical twin sister.
Too bad the only person who knows she’s not the woman they’re looking for is this very grouchy, very sexy, very secret agent who (reluctantly) agrees to help her disappear. Which is easier said than done when a criminal organization wants you dead and every intelligence service in the world wants you caught.
Luckily, no one is looking for a pair of lovesick newlyweds on their honeymoon. And soon they’re lying their way across Europe—dodging bullets and faking kisses as they race to unravel a deadly conspiracy and clear her sister’s name.
But with every secret they uncover, the truth shifts, until she no longer knows who to trust: the twin she can’t remember or the mysterious man she can’t let herself forget…
Mister Magic by Kiersten White
Thirty years after a tragic accident shut down production of the classic children’s program Mister Magic, the five surviving cast members have done their best to move on. But just as generations of cultishly devoted fans still cling to the lessons they learned from the show, the cast, known as the Circle of Friends, have spent their lives searching for the happiness they felt while they were on it. The friendship. The feeling of belonging. And the protection of Mister Magic.
But with no surviving video of the show, no evidence of who directed or produced it, and no records of who—or what—the beloved host actually was, memories are all the former Circle of Friends has.
Then a twist of fate brings the castmates back together at the remote desert filming compound that feels like it’s been waiting for them all this time. Even though they haven’t seen each other for years, they understand one another better than anyone has since.
After all, they’re the only ones who hold the secret of that circle, the mystery of the magic man in his infinitely black cape, and, maybe, the answers to what really happened on that deadly last day. But as the Circle of Friends reclaim parts of their past, they begin to wonder: Are they here by choice, or have they been lured into a trap?
Because magic never forgets the taste of your friendship. . . .
Printable PDF
Feel free to distribute these discussion questions to your book club members before your meeting. Simply click the link below to download and print the PDF file.
Happy reading! ❤️