My Sister's Child (Finnerty)

Discussion Questions
1. Do you think that Isla gave enough consideration to her offer to donate eggs to her sister?

2. Whose "side," if any, were you on?

3. Did you feel empathy for Jo's stance initially? What about afterwards?

4. Jo argues that by virtue of the fact that Isla was the younger of the two of them, that she lived a carefree existence whereas she was burdened down with the weight of expectation. Do you think the position you are born in a family impacts on how you are raised?

5. Isla and Jo have very different attitudes to their mother’s choice to end her own life. Isla is almost ambivalent towards her whereas Jo is angry. Why do you think this is?

6. Do you think Jo is more similar to her mother than she would like to admit? What characteristics do they share?

7. Jo firmly believes that 'nurture' is what matters more so than 'nature'. What is your opinion on the nature versus nurture debate?

8. Modern reproductive techniques throw up a lot of ethical dilemmas for today's society. Do you agree with using a donor to conceive a child?

9. If you were a single woman nearing forty desperate to have a child, would you consider "going it alone" like Isla?

10. Which character do you think grew most over the course of the story?
(Questions courtesy of the author.)

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