Problem 1. In How Much of These Hills is Gold, Pam Zhang crafts a reimagined American West, filled with magic and myth, at the height of the Gold Rush. The epigraph reads: "This land is not your land" but within Chapter One, Lucy recalls Ba's words: "You remember you belong to this place as much as anybody." (24). What do you think the novel is saying about birthrights? Are they inherited or claimed?
Problem 2. Much is made about the burial process-for loved ones; for things and animals; for past selves. Is there a right way to honor the dead as seen in the novel? What does Sam's decision to take the two silver dollars from Ba's burial tell us about their relationship?
Problem 3. What is Lucy's experience going to school? What does Ma's intervention with Lucy's teacher tell us about their relationship?
Story from How Much of These Hills Is Gold by C Pam Zhang