How Beautiful We Were

Discuss how the alternating chapters from the perspective of the children impacts the book. Why would Mbue make the literary choice to use the children as a first-person plural narrator?

Thinking about the different models of protest/attempts at change that are exemplified in the text, make an argument for which is the most effective. Remember to define what you think “effective” means in this context. Potential examples are dialogue, education, electing new government officials, raising awareness, property destruction, and violent protest.

Show how one or both of the village stories are allegories for the book as a whole. The leopard story first appears on page 30, and the second song/story, about the monster and the fish, appears on page 138.