Book Club Questions for Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid

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Book club questions for Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid takes an in-depth look at this adventurous tale about two astronauts in love. There will be spoilers so for more context about the book, check out my spoiler-free review first.

I so enjoyed Atmosphere! I found it so engaging, and quite emotional too. The love story between Joan and Vanessa is so heartfelt, but also Joan’s relationship with her niece Frances was impactful as well. Plus, all the space adventure scenes too! What a great one overall.

Let me know what you think about the book in the comments section below!

The Synopsis

Joan Goodwin has been obsessed with the stars for as long as she can remember. Thoughtful and reserved, Joan is content with her life as a professor of physics and astronomy at Rice University and as aunt to her precocious niece, Frances. That is, until she comes across an advertisement seeking the first women scientists to join NASA’s space shuttle program. Suddenly, Joan burns to be one of the few people to go to space.

Selected from a pool of thousands of applicants in the summer of 1980, Joan begins training at Houston’s Johnson Space Center, alongside an exceptional group of fellow candidates: Top Gun pilot Hank Redmond and scientist John Griffin, who are kind and easygoing even when the stakes are highest; mission specialist Lydia Danes, who has worked too hard to play nice; warmhearted Donna Fitzgerald, who is navigating her own secrets; and Vanessa Ford, the magnetic and mysterious aeronautical engineer, who can fix any engine and fly any plane.

As the new astronauts become unlikely friends and prepare for their first flights, Joan finds a passion and a love she never imagined. In this new light, Joan begins to question everything she thinks she knows about her place in the observable universe.

Then, in December of 1984, on mission STS-LR9, it all changes in an instant.

Book Club Questions for Atmosphere

1. The story alternates between the present timeline where mission STS-LR9 is experiencing disaster and then back to the start of Joan’s journey with the space program. How did the balance between the two storylines create more tension for the story?
2. What sparked Joan’s love for space? Why did she decide to apply to NASA’s space program?
3. We meet a big cast of characters including Vanessa, Griff, Lydia and more. Why was it important for us to get to know so many characters?
4. When did it become apparent there was something more than friendship between Vanessa and Joan?
5. What did you think about their love story overall?
6. Vanessa and Joan have to go to great lengths to hide their romance. While the book is set in the ’80s, there’s still similar parallels to today. Do you feel they would still have to hide their romance if the story was set in present day? Or do you think things have changed?
7. There is plenty of rich detail about the NASA space program. Did you feel you learned anything new about space travel while reading the novel?
8. A big focus on the novel is the love Joan has for her niece Frances. Joan’s sister Barbara is selfish and not emotionally available for Frances so a lot of the heavy hitting goes to Joan. Let’s talk about Joan’s bond with Frances. How would you have handled the situation with her sister if you were Joan?
9. While Joan does get an adventure in space, she’s sick for most of it. And quickly learns that she prefers to stay on Earth and help with the space program from there. Why was staying Earthbound a better fit for Joan?
10. There’s sexism at display for the women working at the space program, and Taylor Jenkins Reid (TJR) showed different reactions to it. Where Vanessa and Joan were annoyed and called it out, Lydia laughed along with the men, finding it an easier route. Let’s discuss how the TJR displayed sexism in the novel.
11. Joan and Vanessa discuss quite a bit from their love of space to their different perspectives about God. What stuck out to you the most from their conversations?
12. NASA eventually gets wind of the romance between Joan and Vanessa. And Joan ends up becoming guardian of Frances. As a result of the two events, Joan breaks up with Vanessa in order to save Vanessa’s career. But Vanessa refuses to let Joan leave her behind. What did you think as those scenes were unfolding?
13. It eventually all leads to the mission where Vanessa is in space, and several crew members die. What does it say about Vanessa that she wouldn’t leave Lydia behind?
14. Did you think Vanessa had died trying to come back to Earth? What was your reaction when it’s revealed she survived and successfully brought Lydia back?
15. What were your thoughts on the ending? What happens next for Joan and Vanessa?
16. If TJR writes a sequel, what would you like to see the story focus on?

Additional Recommendations

Hope you enjoyed book club questions for Atmosphere! Here are some more recommendations along with links to book club questions.

Carrie Soto is fierce, and her determination to win at any cost has not made her popular. But by the time she retires from tennis, she is the best player the world has ever seen. She has shattered every record and claimed twenty Grand Slam titles. And if you ask Carrie, she is entitled to every one. She sacrificed nearly everything to become the best, with her father, Javier, as her coach. A former champion himself, Javier has trained her since the age of two.

But six years after her retirement, Carrie finds herself sitting in the stands of the 1994 US Open, watching her record be taken from her by a brutal, stunning player named Nicki Chan.

At thirty-seven years old, Carrie makes the monumental decision to come out of retirement and be coached by her father for one last year in an attempt to reclaim her record. Even if the sports media says that they never liked “the Battle-Axe” anyway. Even if her body doesn’t move as fast as it did. And even if it means swallowing her pride to train with a man she once almost opened her heart to: Bowe Huntley. Like her, he has something to prove before he gives up the game forever.

Cate Kay knows how to craft a story. As the creator of a bestselling book trilogy that struck box office gold as a film series, she’s one of the most successful authors of her generation. The thing is, Cate Kay doesn’t really exist. She’s never attended author events or granted any interviews. Her real identity had been a closely guarded secret, until now.

As a young adult, she and her best friend Amanda fantasized escaping their difficult homes and moving to California to become movie stars. But the day before their grand adventure, a tragedy shattered their dreams and Cate has been on the run ever since, taking on different names and charting a new future. But after a shocking revelation, Cate understands that returning home is the only way she’ll be a whole person again.

Happy reading!