THE HUNGER GAMES - Discussion Questions

1.  How does Katniss feel about the country of Panem? Why does she need to make her face "an indifferent mask" and be careful what she says in public?

2.     How many districts in the country of Panem? At what age people from these districts would be candidates for The Hunger Game? Did they enjoin the game? Why or why not?

3.     Describe the relationships of Katniss with Gale, with Prim, with her mother. How do those relationships define her personality?

4.     How tributes are selected? How did Katniss become one of two tributes in district 12.

5.     How does Katniss‘ early encounter with Peeta affect their relationship after they are chosen as tributes?

6.     Who is Katniss and Peeta’s mentor? Is he a good mentor or a bad one? Explain.

7.     Why are the "tributes" given stylists and dressed so elaborately for the opening ceremony?

8.     When Peeta declares his love for Katniss in the interview, does he really mean it or did Haymitch create the "star-crossed lovers" story? What does Haymitch mean when he says, "It's all a big show. It's all how you're perceived."

9.     Why do they need to impress sponsors and what are those sponsors looking for when they are watching the Games?

10.     Before the Games start, Peeta tells Katniss, " . . . I want to die as myself . . . I don't want them to change me in there. Turn me into some kind of monster that I'm not." What does this tell you about Peeta? What does he fear more than death? Is he able to stay true to himself during the Games?

11.     What are the most important skills Katniss has for staying alive - her knowledge of nature? - her skill with bow and arrow? - her trapping ability? Explain.

12.     What makes Katniss and Rue trust each other to become partners? What does Katniss gain from this friendship besides companionship? Is Katniss and Rue's partnership formed for different reasons than the other group's?

13.     When does Katniss first realize that Peeta does care for her and is trying to keep her alive? When does she realize her own feelings for him? Did Haymitch think all along that he could keep them both alive by stressing the love story? Are they actually in love?

14.     What do you think is the cruelest part of the Hunger Games? What kind of people would devise this spectacle for the entertainment of their populace?

15.     What did Katniss do to save Peeta? Did her action make everyone happy?  Why or why not?

16.     Do you like the ending of the book? Can you predict what would happen in the next book?  

scussion Questions

1.     Where did Jack first plan to take Cora on his first date? Why did his change his mind?

2.     How did Jack, Cora and Austin enter the underworld?

3.     Was Jack a freak? What made him think so?

4.     Did Jack regret that he took Cora to the underworld? Why?

5.     Who was actually “ The Living Avenger”? Explain.

6.     Why was Euri sad when she found out Professor Schmitt couldn’t help Jack and Cora to find the way back to the living world?

7.     Who was Nate? Why did Euri haunt him?

8.     Who was Colonel Mann? Did he a good ghost?

9.     Who was General Viele? Why was his haunted site classified?

10.   Why didn’t Euri want Jack to stay in the underworld? Was she Jack’s good friend?

11.   Was Jack a good friend of Austin? Why did Jack decide to go back to save Austin?

12.     What do you learn about the friendship between Jack, Eurin, Cora and Austin? 

Discussion Questions

1. 1. Tyler’s landscaping job develops his muscles, but also allows him to use his skills at digging holes: “I was good at digging holes. It was the rest of life I sucked at” (p. 39). What figurative holes has Tyler dug for himself in his life? Is it really true that he isn’t good at anything else?
   
   
   2. Why did Tyler’s father stop him from doing landscape job?
   
   
   3. What do you thing of Tyler’s relationship with members of his family?
   
   
   4. Why did Chip hate Tyler? Why did Tyler let Chip won the arm wrestling game?
   
   
   5. Although he doesn’t seem like a depressed person, Tyler admits to being preoccupied with death. “Thinking about death relaxed me” (p. 44). Why? In what ways has he died and been reborn again throughout the story?
   
   
   6. At Tyler’s high school there is a clear distinction between the popular crowd and everyone else. Where do you fit in the social scale at your school? In what ways has the status you hold in your social sphere defined you? In what ways is this role true to who you are? In what ways is it not?
   
   
   7. Do you think Tyler’s school treats him fair? Why or why not?
   
   
   8. Why does Tyler like Bethany? Were there any signs early on that she might not really like him the same way he liked her? What do you think is her real attraction to him? Is it true when his sister Hannah says that it could never have worked out? In your own life, are there any examples of two very different people who manage to be together despite their apparent differences?
   
   
   9. What do you think of Tyler’s reaction to Bethany’s behavior at the party? How would you react? Would you be sad? Angry?
   
   
   10. Why do you think Laurie Halse Anderson chose “Twisted” as the title of this novel? What does it mean in relation to the story?
   
   
   11. On the surface Tyler seems to disrespect the janitors that he is made to work with as part of his probation. Yet they act as a sort of conscience and offer support later in the story. Have you ever gotten help from an unexpected source?
   
   
   12. Who has Tyler been trying to be? His father? A loser? A cool guy? Which of these identities is closest to his true self?
   
   
   13. Do you like Tyler as a person?  If you were him, would you do differently? (Toward his friends, his family, and his school?)
   
   
   14. What is the different between Tyler at the beginning and Tyler at the end of the book?
   
   
   15. Do you like the ending of the book?  Would you expect different ending?
   
   

Discussion Questions

1.      Why were there so many French names in New Orleans?

2.      Why was Jessie's family so poor? What had happened in the past to cause this poverty?

3.      What was Jessie mother's occupation?

4.      What happened to Jessie when he comes back from his aunt’s house?

5.      Why are one of the chapters in the book called "The Moonlight"?

6.      What business was Moonlight engaged in? were it a dangerous business? Why?

7.      How many crews in the ship including Jessie? What did Purvis mean when he said”:… all because of you, so watch your step for if something goes wrong, it 'll be your fault. Don' t forget Jonah and what happened to him, only you shall land up in the belly of a shark-" s. Explain what Purvis means. What is he referring to when he talks about a Jonah?

8.      Why did Jessie mistrust Stout, who was nice to him, and trusted Purvis who's rough with him?

9.      Why has Jessie difficulties getting used to life on a ship?

10.  What was Jessie’s main job on the Moonlight?

11.  Is there no cure for such a disease?" Jessie  asked. "None," replied Ned. "No more than there's a cure for man himself." What did Ned mean with that?

12.  Why did the captain throw Nicholas Spark overboard?

13.  What did Stout want from Jessie? Why did he steal his pipe and threw it into the hold? Why did he forced Jessie down into the hold to search for it?

14.  Stout thought he saw a British ship and the Captain ordered the Spanish flag down and the American flag up. Why did  he do that?

15.  When the Captain realized that the ship was American and he shouted: "Stout! You've murdered me!" Why did he say that?

16.  Why did they throw the slaves overboard?

17.  What happened to Moonlight and its crews and captain in the end?

18.  Was Jessie a good swimmer? How did he survive?

19.  Why does the old man want Jessie to tell him all about "that ship"?
Why does he say" "That's the way it was,..."

20.  Would Jessie tell anyone about the Daniel? Why or why not?

21.  Who was the slave dancer?

22.  Why was Jessie unable to listen to the music later in his life ?

FLOWERS FOR ANGERNON - Disscusion Questions

1.     What time period does this novel take place?

2.     What disability does Charlie have?

3.     Does Charlie need the surgery to become happy with life?

4.     Where does Charlie work?

5.      Charlie states, "People think it's funny when a dumb person can't do things the same way they can." What is society's perception on the mentally disabled? Does society treat them as outcasts or accommodate them?

6.     Who is running the experiment?

7.     Who is Algernon?

8.     How do Nemur and Strauss treat Charlie? Do they treat him like a human or like a rat you would perform experiments on?

9.      What are the similarities and differences between Charlie and Algernon?

10.  What changes took place at the bakery when Charlie became smarter? How did people begin to treat him? How did they react to his new found intelligence?

11.  How does Charlie's personality begin to change as a result of his increasing IQ?

12. Do you prefer the Charlie before or after the surgery?

13. What is Charlie's relationship to Fay? How does it change throughout the story? Is Charlie's relationship with Fay a healthy one?

14.  Which characters can be considered Charlie's true friends?

15.   Describe the procedure and risks of the experiment.

16.   How do Charlie and the scientists come to realize the experiment will not work?

17. Where does Charlie end up in the final chapter?

18.  What are the main themes and morals throughout the novel?

19.     How does treatment of the mentally disabled currently compare to the treatment of the mentally disabled in 70s?

20. What effect does writing in journal form have on the overall novel?

21.  What is the significance of the title. What are the flowers's for Algernon significant of?

22.  Do you like the ending of the book? If you were the author how would you end the story? 

THE NIGHT TOURIST - Discussion questions

1.     Can you describe Jack?

2.     Why did Jack’s father never talk to him about his mother?

3.     After the accident what did happen to Jack?

4.     Why did Jack’s father send him to New York to see Dr. Lyons?  

5.     What did Jack take from the doctor’s office?

6.     How did Jack meet Euri?

7.     When Jack decided to go with Euri to be “an urban explorer “

do you think he is wise or foolish?

8.     Who was Euri? Can you describe her?

9.     Can you describe New York underworld?

10.   Why did people there know Jack was still alive?

11.  Did Professor Schmitt know that Jack was alive?

Why or why not?

12.   Why did Jack want to stay in New York underworld?

13.  Would you do the same if you were Jack?

14.   Euri seemed to have secrets or issues,  why did she avoid talking about how she died or about her parents?

15.  Why did Euri haunt the penthouse?

16.   How did Jack know the people in the penthouse still remembered her?

17.   What was Euri’s real name?  How did Jack know Euri’s real name?

18. At the end Jack realize what he was destined to do “ He needed to bring Euri back to the living world with him” Why?

19. Who did come to the underworld to bring Jack’s mother to the living world?

20.  Why had she returned to the underworld instead of staying with him?

Do you think Jack’s mother was glad to be found by Jack?

21.   How would you feel if you were Jack?

22.   How does Jack enable his mother to move on?

23.   At the end Jack decided to look for Euri to find out where the guards took her instead of finding his mother. Do you agree with his decision? Why? What would you do?

24.    Do you think Euri was friendly with Jack so he would bring her back to the living world?

25.   Did Jack’s father wish that Jack could bring his mother back to him?

26.   Are you disappointed when Jack failed to bring Euri back to the living world?

27.   What did Jack actually find there?

28.   What do you think about the ending? 

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO LARRY - Discussion Questions

1. All Josh really wants is to make a difference in the world without having to interact personally with it. How does he reconcile those two goals? Are the reconcilable?

2. Each section of the book is introduced with quotes from the Bible about Jesus. Is Josh a biblical figure? Which parts of the novel point to that and which don't? Since Josh is supposedly writing this book, why would he want to be associated with Jesus? Is that consistent with what we know about him?

3. Discuss the ethics of spouting views on the Internet, or in any medium, under a false identity. Betagold claims that Larry is a coward for keeping his identity a secret. Do you agree? Or is Larry right to think that revealing who he is would detract from his message?

4.  Why does Betagold feel so strongly about outing Josh?

5. Paint a picture of Josh’s character. Why is it that he has only one friend? Discuss his relationship with Beth. Do you think he would have created the Larry Web site if he had told Beth how he felt about her?

6.  Is Beth's reaction to the news about Josh realistic? What do you think she'll do when she finds out how Josh attempts to "solve" his problem?  

              

7. Josh steals confidential documents from Peter’s briefcase in order to attack the companies his stepfather represents. Is he right to do this? Does the end justify the means?

8. “No offense, Josh, but this idealism thing is a phase, like so many other things you’ve been through. . . . You don’t have enough life experience. You don’t know how the real world works yet.” How much of what Peter says to Josh is true, or is it as Josh responds, “Adults always say that to keep kids quiet?”

9.  Is Peter's reaction to Josh's Web activities understandable? He's an advertising executive. Is there a place for advertisement? What is it?

10. Josh’s/Larry’s sermons rail against exploitation of third-world countries, celebrity worship, and the way big business manipulates our lives, to name a few issues. What are the things about society that you and your friends hope to change?

11.  Josh limits himself to very few possessions. Is this an admirable thing to do? What possessions could you not do without?

12.  What factors do you consider before purchasing something?

13. Could you be identified by your possessions?

14. In his quest to be antimaterialistic, Josh has just seventy-five possessions, including shirts, shoes, keys, books, CDs, and underwear. If you had to limit the things you own to seventy-five items, what would they be?

15. Josh states, “I've only wanted one thing in my life–to contribute, to help make the world a better place . . . not with technology, but with ideas.” Is Josh true to his vision?

16. Josh says that we feast on celebrities, caring for people who have no idea who we are. How do you feel about this? Should we care about the private lives of our favorite rock stars? If you were a celebrity, how would you handle fame?

17. Is the way Josh/Larry manipulates his followers any different from the way the media, big business, or politicians manipulate the public?

18. Discuss Josh’s motivation for creating the Larry Web site. Is he being honest or is he just playing a game? He is disturbed by the magnitude of the response to his Web site and by the hero he becomes, but he does not close down the web site. Why?

19. Josh is disillusioned by the reaction of the public once his identity is know. No one seems to be interested in his message–people are interested only in him as a celebrity. The producer of 20/20 tells him, “They want to know about you. You’re the story, just you. People want gossip; people want sizzle.” What does this tell you about how the media views the public? What happens when the sizzle fizzles?

20. Some of Josh’s actions might be considered unethical. Do you think anything Josh does is immoral? Is the writing of his story the solution for Josh, or is it just another way to avoid taking responsibility? How will Josh find peace? Is he on the right path?

21. Janet Tashjian wrote a sequel to The Gospel According to Larry called Vote for Larry. Would you read it?

TAKEN by Edward Bloor - Discussion Questions

1.     In what year the story takes place?

2.     How old is Charity? What do you know about her?

3.     Who are Victoria and Albert?

4.     Would you like to live in a place like Highlands? Why or why not?

5.     Who is Charity’s best friend? Who is her brother and what happened to him?

6.     Who is Mickie Meyers? Does Charity like her?

7.     Who is Charity’s father? How did he get his money?

8.     What is the different between the kids from Highlands and kids from Mangrove?

9.     What did parents in Highlands do to protect their children from kidnapping?

10.  What happened to Charity after having dinner with Victoria and Albert?

11.   Who is Dissi?

12.   Do you think  Patience and Hopewell are Charity’s good friend? Why?

13.  Who is Dr. M Reyes?

14.   Did Dr. Hank Meyers die when his helicopter exploded?

15.   At the end what happen to Charity? Is she still with the kidnapers?

16.   What do you think about the ending of the book?

SPANKING SHAKESPEARE – Questions for Discussion

1.     Why did Shakespeare Shapiro hate his name? Do you want to be named after famous people?

2.     How did Shakespeare get his name?

3.     Why did Shakespeare actually describe his life as a series of catastrophes?

4.     What was Shakespeare’s senior project that needed to be done when school ended?

5.     What was Shakespeare gifted with?

6.     Was Shakespeare popular at his school? What did he do to make himself recognized when he was at 11^th grade? Did he success? 

7.     What was the biggest issue in Shakespeare’s life?

8.     What make you like or dislike the main character?

9.     Do you think Shakespeare’s parent treat him fare?

10.  What do you think of the ending?

11.   Do you think Shapiro's voice fits perfectly for a teenage boy?

12.   Shakespeare, some readers say what might be embarrassing to some, but say what it is raw, true and real. What do you think about this comment?

13.   What part of the book does you like and dislike?   

14.    What do you learn from the book?

15.    Would you recommend the book to your friend?  

MEMOIRS OF A TEENAGER AMNESIAC - Discussion Questions

1.     Naomi suffers from amnesia after falling and hitting her head. What is amnesia? What causes it? How can it be treated? What happens to Naomi when she waked-up?

2.     When Naomi realizes that her parents had a very nasty divorce, her attitude towards them after her accident is very different than her attitude towards them before her accident. Why?

3.     When Naomi first gets back home, she finds her old food journal. She says, “I felt disgusting. I mean, really, what kind of person keeps a food diary?” Is there anything about your life right now that you might have a similar reaction to if you looked at it from a stranger’s perspective?

4.     Naomi seems to be very much like two different people: The Naomi before the accident, and the Naomi after the accident. Does the new Naomi like the old one? Why or Why not?

5.     What are the differences between Ace. Will and James? Can you explain why does Naomi attract to James?

6.     Naomi’s boyfriend may not be the best guy for her, but he is a jock and is popular in school. How important is it to be popular in high school? Is it worth being with the wrong person if it means a higher social status?

7.     When Naomi cuts her hair, she says “…I felt like I was getting rid of someone’s expectation of me…It was the end of normal. The girl in the yearbook would never have had short hair.” How do you think she was feeling about her “former” self at that point? What does her haircut signify?

8.     When Naomi starts from scratch and gets to know her friend Will all over again, she starts to notice more about him, and possibly falls in love. What do you think Naomi noticed about Will that she hadn’t noticed before? What do you think she liked about Will that she didn’t have with her boyfriend?

9.     Do you think it’s reckless of Naomi to get involved with someone like James? Why do you think Naomi is drawn to James, given how different he is from Ace and Will?

10.    When and how does Naomi regain her memory, why does she feel reluctant to tell anyone?

SAVVY - Discussion Questions

1.  Why do the girls in Mibs’s class make fun of her? What would you do in her place?

2. The Beaumonts have to keep their savvies a secret from everyone. Would that be difficult for you? Do you think everyone has a secret? Who would you trust with your big secrets?

3. Why does Rosemary Meeks come to the Beaumont house? How are things different with the Meeks family around? Is her influence on the Beaumont house positive or negative?

4. Describe Mibs’s relationship with her parents and siblings. How is it complicated by their savvies? What are the positive and negative aspects of having siblings with extraordinary powers?

5. Grandpa says to Mibs, “Your savvy’s in your blood. It’s an inheritance, like your brown eyes or your grandma’s long toes or her talent for dancing to polka music.” (p. 121) Are people born with special talents or do they have to work at developing their unique abilities? Are there any talents you wish you had?

6. Explain how Mibs ends up on a bible delivery bus with Bobbi, Will, Fish, and Samson. Where do they hope to arrive? How do things go awry? 

7. Which scene in their wild adventure is your favorite?

8. Slowly, Mibs discovers the way her savvy works. How does she figure it out? How is it different from the savvy that she originally hoped for? In the last year, what have you, like Mibs, discovered about yourself?

9. How does Lill Kiteley end up on the bus? What would you say is her special know-how? How does she use that know-how during her time on the bus and how does it affect the passengers?

10. How does Mibs’s relationship with Will and Bobbi change over the course of the adventure? Who do you think changes the most in the story?

11. Fish and Rocket have a terrible time controlling their savvies. How does this cause a ruckus for the Beaumont clan and others who know them? A

12. Momma warns Mibs that, “You can’t get rid of part of what makes you YOU and be happy.” What makes you YOU? How do you let that special part shine through?

13. Do you feel like kids today are forced to grow up too fast? How might different aspects of modern life (the media, school, friends, etc.) affect the ways in which kids mature?

14. After listening to so many voices in her head throughout the novel, what does Mibs discover about the voices that she and others listen to? 

15. What do you think makes Poppa wake up at last? Do you think it has anything to do with one of the Beaumont’s savvies? 

Free book:
http://blacklib.com/book/361595