Using the Common Book in Your Class

One way that KU Reads engages students with the Common Book is through coursework. Faculty and instructors are encouraged to integrate the Common Book into their courses by exploring the themes throughout the book and making connections to their discipline. On the KU Reads website, instructors will find teaching resources that support integration of the Common Book into the classroom.

Sample Discussion Questions

  • Green describes Earth as a “human-centered planet” in The Anthropocene Reviewed. Do you agree? Do you disagree? Why?


  • The Anthropocene Reviewed features three hidden reviews. Why do you think Green chose to include (and hide) the reviews? How do the hidden reviews contribute to the story Green is trying to tell?


  • In “Harvey” and “Hiroyuki Doi’s Circle Drawings” Green explores movies and art as a way to cope with mental health and difficult periods in life. Do you have a strong connection to a song, movie, show, or art that helped you through a difficult time? Why do you think you think it helped you cope, manage, or feel better?


  • Green uses seemingly random objects as the focus of many of his reviews, including Diet Dr. Pepper and Scratch n’ Sniff Stickers. If you had to pick one “random” object to review that you encounter in your daily life, what would it be? Why did you choose that object?


  • In “Air-Conditioning” and “Kentucky Bluegrass” Green explores the complex issues of our impact on the world around us, and the feeling that our individual impact doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things. Do you agree with Green’s thought process here? Do you disagree? Why?

    • Sample Assignments

  • ENGL 102 - Research Personal Essay, created by Emily Counsil
  • Group Synthesis Podcast Episode Assignment, created by Emily Counsil