My Tweeners book club (4th and 5th grade boys and girls) recently read Nic Blake and the Remarkables by Angie Thomas, and everyone loved it. The Heritage Book Club has been going strong since 2017, and it’s been an incredible experience. If you’d like to know more, you can read How to Start a Book Club and check out the ongoing list of our Heritage Book Club Monthly Picks.

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In this first book of a thrilling fantasy trilogy, readers take a wild ride filled with top-notch world-building as Nic Blake harnesses her magical powers as a Manifestor, one of the most potent Remarkables. Along with her two friends, Nic sets out on an adventure filled with unpredictable twists and turns as she searches for answers to save her family and the world.

This is probably the most popular book that we’ve read so far this year. The kids really liked it, and so did I! Nic Blake reminded everyone of a mix between Amari and the Night Brothers and Tristan Strong, and that’s an amazing compliment. Angie Thomas masterfully contrasted the Remarkable and Unremarkable experiences while bridging the two through the perspective of JP, Nic’s best friend, who uniquely has a foot in both worlds.

The story offers a mix of mystery, adventure, fantasy, sci-fi, monsters, and mythology with a heaping serving of African and African American language, history, and culture. Such a treat!

Virtual “Author Visit”

I kicked things off with this video of author Angie Thomas being interviewed about Nic Blake and the Remarkables. I suggest you skip the first 30 seconds and cue the clip to start there. It’s important to me that the kids always get to see who writes the books we read in the book club. It personalizes the work while inspiring them to become authors, artists, and creators who authentically tell their stories.

Discussion Questions

I always find or prepare discussion questions ahead of time so I can help keep the conversation moving, but we often veer off in various directions based on what captures the kids’ attention. This time around, I relied on the Nic Blake and the Remarkables Teacher’s Guide from the author’s website. These are the questions that prompted the richest discussions:

• How is the Nic Blake at the end different from the Nic Blake at the beginning?
• What does JP offer to Nic, in their friendship? What does it mean to be a “seer” in the book?
• Are the colors of the different types of Remarkables representative of them? Do any of these types exist in other stories?
• What do you think of the depiction of Uhuru in the novel? Who would like to go to somewhere like Uhuru? Why? What do you think of the idea of the most powerful people living in a separate city, away from less powerful people?
• Which piece of Giftech would they most like? Why? How would members describe Giftech? Is it magic? Advanced technology? Both?

Before we wrapped up, each kiddo received a book charm to add to their book club chain (something we do each month), and I introduced next month’s book: The Magic in Changing Your Stars

Bonus Material

This is the book trailer I showed the kids last month to introduce Nic Blake and the Remarkables to them. Everyone was dying to know what a hellhound was, and it ended up being just as cool as it sounds. I’m not sure that I’ve ever seen them so excited about an upcoming book! And here’s a free bookmark printable that kids will enjoy.

More Book Club Lesson Guides

If you enjoyed this Nic Blake and the Remarkables book club lesson plan, you may enjoy reading about some of our previous meetings:

• Clubhouse Mysteries: The Buried Bones Mystery by Sharon M. Draper
• Ways to Make Sunshine by Renee Watson
• Ansley’s Big Bake Off by Kaityln, Olivia, and Camryn Pitts
• The Toothpaste Millionaire by Jean Merrill
• The Last Last-Day-of-Summer by Lamar Giles
• Justin and the Best Biscuits in the World by Mildred Pitts Walter
• Clayton Byrd Goes Underground by Rita Williams-Garcia