Book Club Discussion Questions
Use our LitLovers Book Club Resources; they can help with discussions for any book:
• How to Discuss a Book (helpful discussion tips)
• Generic Discussion Questions—Fiction and Nonfiction
• Read-Think-Talk (a guided reading chart)
Also consider these LitLovers talking points to help get a discussion started for Goldengrove:
1. Nico's love for her sister Margaret borders on worship. What was so special about Margaret that drew Nico to her so intensely? Were you, as well, drawn to her?
2. Discuss the significance of the novel's title—and how Margaret came by her name. What implications might that have had for Margaret's fate?
3. Talk about Nico's parents and the way in which they handle their grief. How does the family reconfigure itself after Margaret's death? Is it possible to judge how anyone handles the loss of a loved one, especially a child?
4. What is the progression of Nico's grief—how does she cope...or not cope? In what way does her relationship with her parents change during the novel? How does she come to view herself?
5. Were you comfortable or uncomfortable with Nico and Aaron's growing relationship? What do you think of Aaron?
6. How do references to Alfred Hitchcock's film Vertigo and to the Millerite cult relate to the story? Do those allusions enrich the story for you...or not?
7. This is seen as a "coming of age" story in which a young person is initiated into the adult world, usually by crossing over a traumatic threshold. The child-become-adult leaves behind childish things and learns a valuable "adult" lesson. In this novel, what does Nico come to understand about herself and the way the world works? Whether you're already an adult or a young person, what, if anything, did you learn in reading Goldengrove?
(Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution. Thanks.)