Printable Book Club Questions for Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke

Let’s first unpack our thoughts on Natalie. What is going on there? Do you think she has an undiagnosed mental illness? Or is she simply just cruel and mean?
Her mother instilled Christian values and traditional lifestyles, which Natalie more than took to heart. But it’s interesting that her mother would get frustrated at Natalie’s bad attitude and would ask her, “Why is it so hard for you to be kind?” Let’s turn the question to the group: Why couldn’t Natalie ever just be nice? Was there ever a moment she was?
We have the two timelines, one in the present where Natalie wakes up seemingly in 1855 with the same husband and most of the same children, and then the past, which eventually connects to the present. What did you think was going on with Natalie in the ‘past’? Tell us your theories you had as you read the book.
Natalie is extremely sheltered, and she was not prepared for college life. Instead of trying to integrate or even understand her classmates, she judged them and even had disputes with her roommate, Reena. What was behind Natalie’s judgment of her classmates and Reena?
When she meets Caleb, the son of a prominent republican politician, Natalie believes she has hit the jackpot. She can become a good Christian, wife, and mother, plus he comes from money, too. When did it become obvious that her dream was unfounded and the two were a bad match?
What was your impression of Caleb?
Let’s take a look now at Natalie’s life working without technology in the past. What stuck out to you the most about those scenes, including her interactions with ‘Old Caleb’?
When Natalie gives birth, she’s in over her head, deeply unhappy, and doesn’t show much affection for her daughter, Clementine. Do you feel she was suffering from postpartum depression, or was motherhood just not for her?
How did her dismissive attitude toward Clementine impact her daughter for years to come?
Caleb is at a loss for what to do for work after Natalie dismisses his teacher idea. Eventually, Natalie comes up with the idea to buy a farm in Idaho, with his dad’s money. Why did Natalie think the farm was a good idea?
This novel takes a deep dive into the tradwife lifestyle and influencer culture. What is your take on both of those concepts? How did this book explore the hypocrisy of a tradwife influencer?
Natalie is obsessed with her haters, often calling them elitist, out-of-touch progressive women. What was your reaction to Natalie’s constant obsession with her ‘haters’?
Eventually, it’s revealed that Caleb had an affair with Shannon, Yesteryear’s producer. Natalie is enraged and assaults Shannon, which Shannon eventually reveals to a journalist. Let’s unpack that scene and all the reveals.
We learn that Natalie did not time-travel, and is not in a reality show, but in fact, she had a mental breakdown after Shannon’s interview, and turned Yesteryear into a farm from the past to hide from the truth. What were your thoughts as you read all of that unfold? Why did Natalie and Caleb go into hiding?
Clementine comes back to rescue her siblings. What does it say about Natalie that she didn’t even fight to keep her kids?
Natalie and Caleb leave, and she’s arrested and has to serve 30 years in prison for child abuse and other crimes. Were you glad she was brought to justice?
Why did she want to do her TV interview with Reena after all this time?
What happens next for all her children?
Natalie was instilled to be a good Christian wife, but these thoughts also trap her as well and put her in a box that doesn’t quite fit. Do you see her as the villain of her own choices?