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Diamond Willow
By Helen Frost
For Ages 8-12
Genre: Poetry & Adventure
Willow wants more than anything to mush her family's sled dogs all by herself but the wilderness is a dangerous place when you're alone. Fortunately, the animals around her carry the spirits of her Athabascan ancestors whether she knows it or not. Use these discussion questions, snacks, and activities during your next book club to bring this book to life. Diamond Willow is great for tween and homeschool book clubs or to recommend to dog lovers.
Discussion Questions
In addition to the general book club questions for fiction books found here, below are my favorite questions to get groups talking about Diamond Willow.
What did you think of the book - paws up or down?
What was it like to read the story with the text in diamond shapes?
What did you think about Willow?
Did you understand that Willow's relatives were the animals in every other chapter?
Willow says her grandparents talk about the old times “when people didn’t have TV, computers, telephones, or snowmachines and airplanes” (p. 20). Would you want to live in a time like that? Why or why not?
How did you react to the accident? Was it Willow’s fault?
Was it a good decision to ask Kaylie to help sneak Roxy out? Why?
Why did Cora, the lead dog, take Willow and Kaylie down the old trail instead of the correct one?
Have you ever camped outside overnight? What was it like or what do you think it would be like?
How would you feel if you found Lynx tracks around your campsite in the morning?
Do you think Willow should have received a punishment for her actions? Why?
Did you expect Roxy to be a relative too? If so, when did you realize it?
Did this book remind you of anything else you have read?
If you were to come back as an animal, which animal would you hope to be?
Snack
Doughnuts and Hot Cocoa
On page 19, Willow’s grandma “made a batch of doughnuts. It’s how she tells me without saying much, she’s happy that I’m here.”
Other food from Diamond Willow includes moose meat, potatoes, salmon, and pancakes.
ACTIVITIES
Make shape and concrete poetry
Share shape and concrete poems and encourage kids to write their own. Check out How to Write a Concrete Poem from Poetry4Kids.com or watch this video from Maggie Bell Teaching.
Books with great examples include:
Doodle Dandies by J. Patrick Lewis and images by Lisa Desimini
Try “Weeping Willow”, “Creep and Slither”, and “Lashondra Scores”
Meow Ruff by Joyce Sidman and illustrated by Michelle Berg
Lemonade Lemonade by Bob Raczka and illustrated by Nancy Donige
Animal Videos
Watch a lynx in action in the BBC Earth video Lynx Jumps 2 Meters Straight Up!
Watch sled dogs in action in the National Geographic video Sled Dogs: More Than Meets the Eye
Watch real-life stories about blind sled dogs like in the Associated Press video Blind Sled Dog Thrives With Brother's Help
MORE RESOURCES
The guide includes discussion questions and writing prompts for the book.
This unit includes more resources for exploring the experiences of real-life blind sled dogs and Rachael Scdoris, the first legally blind musher to complete the Iditarod Race.
Read-Alikes
If your readers love Diamond Willow, they'll also enjoy:
