Bring on the tough stuff - there’s not just one right answer.
- What is Singer's role in the story? Is he a protagonist, a plot device, a symbol? Something else entirely?
- What is the role of children in the novel?
- We sure get a lot of information about the weather in this novel. How does this help set the overall mood?
- There's no denying it: this is a really depressing book. But are there any notes of hope at the end?
- Do any of the characters ever fully connect with other people?
- How does the economy play a role in the characters' lives? Don't forget, this is right smack dab in the middle (or, end, actually) of the Great Depression.
- Did you feel connected to the historical context of this book? Do you read it differently when you know that World War II was just around the corner?
- Mick is really the only female lead. What's with that?
- What is Antonapoulos' role in the novel? What would the book look like without him? Could this story have been told without the whole Singer/Antonapoulos story line?