ChAmpion of the world

book club kit

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Consider the protagonists of Champion
of the World, married couple Pepper and
Moira Van Dean. What are the strengths
and weaknesses of each? How would you
describe their marriage?

2. The novel is set during a time when

professional wrestling was beginning to
transition from a pure sport to more of a
choreographed entertainment. How does
this change play out in the novel? What
are the reasons for it?

3. Compare and contrast the two main

female characters, Moira and Carol Jean.
What do they have in common, and in
what ways are they different? What
similar struggles do they face? What
unique ones?

4. How does Champion of the World

illustrate the troubled confluence of race
and sport at a particular time in
historythe 1920s? To what extent is
this relationship still problematic?

5. How does the relationship between

Pepper and Taft change and grow over
the course of the novel?

6. Several characters in the novel

including Taft and sometimes Pepper
seem intent on pursuing courses of
action that are destined to lead to
failure. What motivates them? Are they
deluding themselves, or might there be
some sense in following a losing course?
Could you understand their actions?

7. Much of the novel is set in the authors

native Montana, and Chad Dundas brings
a strong sense of place to the story.
What purpose does this setting serve?
How is it integral to the story?

8. The plotline takes several big twists and

turns. Did you expect any of them?
Which surprised you?

9. In many ways, the novel is a story of

second chances: Pepper and Moira, Taft
and Carol Jean, James Eddy, and even
Fritz Mundt are all seeking a fresh start
and new opportunities. Which characters
come out on top, and which cant seem
to change their lives? What factors hold
some of them back, and which traits
push others forward?

10. One of the benefits of reading historical

fiction is learning more about the places
and times depicted. Did you take away
any interesting new facts from Champion
of the World?

EArLY PrO WrESTLING MOVES

FlYing tackle: In the late 1920s, former NFL

player Gus Sonnenberg integrated a repertoire of

football-style moves into the wrestling playbook.
The Flying Tackle, most notably, brought wrestling off the
mat and into the air.
Description The wrestler lunges at his opponent from a
distance and hits him with his shoulder at or near the waist.

Dropkick: The father of the Dropkick was Abe Coleman, also known as the Hebrew

Hercules, a squat, wide-shouldered powerhouse who wrestled throughout the 1930s. He

learned the dropkick from mimicking the
animal kingdom; he says he observed it watching
kangaroos on a trip to Australia.
Description The wrestler jumps up and kicks his

opponent with the soles of both feet; the wrestler

twists as he jumps so that when the feet connect with
the opponent, one foot is raised higher than the other
(depending on which way he twists) and the wrestler
falls back to the mat on his side or front.

Sunset Flip: Billy Dinty Parks gave us the Sunset Flip, a

now common move that doesnt even seem worthy of being

called high-flying with the kinds of nutty things wrestlers do
today. But when Parks began his career in 1947, the leaping move was
novel, as the ground game still dominated.
Description This move commonly sees an attacking wrestler dive over an

opponent who is facing him, usually bent over forward, catching the opponent
in a waist lock from behind and landing back-first behind the opponent.
From that position the wrestler rolls forward into a sitting position, pulling the
opponent over backward and down to the mat so that the opponent lands
on his back in a sit-out pin position.

adapted From BleacherReport.com. Photos

Joe Loong, tabercil, and Megan Elice Meadows

Create your own

Pro wrestler nAme!

Using the first letter of your first name, find the word in orange. Using the first letter of your
last name, find the word in brown. Put them together to create your wrestling persona!

mighty

grand

primal

maverick

bad news

dirk

shadow

hellfire

basher

swagger

spider

snake

A B C D E F
diamond

johnny

gunner

cerebral

butch

brooklyn

outlaw

hulk

viper

spike

magnum

hercules

spawn

warrior

prince

bunkhouse

titanic

bionic

doctor

freak

fusion

sniper

tiger

swarm

champ

show

ninja

executioner

G H I J K L m
M
n
No
Op
PQ r s
S tT
rocky

sundance

triple

king kong

beefy

crazy

tornado

cowboy

hawk

slate

assassin

tank

u
Uv
Vw
Wx
X Y zZ