Cher: The Memoir: Part One

Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.

1. Think of a time when you had to draw on your own Resilience in the Face of Adversity. What gave you the strength to persevere? How does this experience relate to the experiences that Cher describes in her memoir? 

2. Choose another theme from the book and explain how Cher’s experience with this theme relates to your own life and experiences.

3. Which part of Cher’s childhood or early adulthood can you relate to most strongly? Why?

4. Reflect on Cher’s unique journey from a teenager to young wife and then independent single woman, and compare it to your own experiences.

Examine the book’s relevance to societal issues, historical events, or cultural themes.

1. How does Cher position herself in the context of 1960s music, fashion, and entertainment? How did she act as a force for cultural change?

2. How might Sonny and Cher have influenced American pop culture in the 1960s and 1970s? What other entertainers do they appear to have influenced? 

3. Cher’s early career and first marriage unfolded at a time of change for women in America. Discuss how Cher’s gender may have impacted her experiences in her marriage and show business.

Dive into the book’s structure, characters, themes, and symbolism.

1. By exploring her grandmother’s and mother’s lives in detail, Cher paints a picture of the women in her family as troubled and flawed but ultimately gutsy and resilient. How does she portray herself as a part of that lineage?

2. This book was “ghost written” by several authors who worked with Cher’s input. In which passages do you feel Cher’s voice shines through most strongly? Why?

3. Choose a figure from the book and consider how Cher portrays them. Is it a positive, negative, or nuanced portrayal? Did her book make you consider that person in a new light?