Before the Fall by Noah Hawley February 2018

February 2018 - Before the Fall by Noah Hawley

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group will meet Thursday, February 8th at 7 p.m. in the meeting room of the Fairfax Library to discuss our February book, Before the Fall by Noah Hawley.

Discussion questions are below.

Here are some links for additional background and information:

Jack LaLanne really did bind his hands and tow a boat from Alcatraz

David Bateman and his network are a thinly veiled version of Roger Ailes and Fox News.

Read a brief history of Fox News

Why are people drawn to conspiracy theories?

How to charter your own jet airplane

Coming up, we have the following book to look forward to reading:

Thurs. Mar. 8^th                        Strangers in Their Own Land by Arlie Hochschild

                                    (One Book/One Marin selection)

Saturday March 10      At 12:30 pm the Fairfax library is arranging a skype call with patrons of a library in New Orleans to supplement our discussion of Strangers in Their Own Land.. Please join us!

Thanks for reading with us. I look forward to seeing you at the Fairfax Library.

Beth Bailey-Gates

Friends of the Fairfax Library

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Before the Fall by Noah Hawley

1. Every person on the plane has experienced sadness or difficulties in the past. Do you think that, universally, everyone has his/her own sad story, or is this a unique trait of this particular set of characters?

2. What different meanings could the title BEFORE THE FALL signify?

3. “True horror, you see, comes not from the savagery of the unexpected, but from the corruption of everyday objects, spaces” (363). Do you agree? Do you see this idea reflected elsewhere in the book?

4. In what ways is this novel a traditional thriller? In what ways does it bend the conventions of the thriller genre?

5. The 24-hour news cycle is ubiquitous in our culture. How is this phenomenon portrayed in BEFORE THE FALL, and how does it make you rethink what we see on television every day?

6. BEFORE THE FALL alternates between the present day --- the investigation into the plane crash and Scott’s experience --- and flashbacks to each passenger’s life. As you read more of the flashbacks, how does your understanding of the past inform or change your understanding of the present day narrative?

7. “He [Scott] too is striving for truth. Or maybe he alone”(356). Much of the book revolves around a quest for the truth. What truths are debated or searched for during the course of this book? Do you believe that truth is objective? Do you agree with Bill Cunningham that “people have a right to know” the truth (388)?   

8. Noah Hawley is well-known for his work in film and television. In what scenes do you see this reflected in the book?

9. “Everyone has their path. The choices they’ve made. How any two people end up in the same place at the same time is a mystery” (1). Much of the plot hinges on chance encounters or small decisions. What are some seemingly unimportant choices characters make that turn out to be pivotal?  Do you see this sort of kismet in real life?

10. How is the concept of heroism explored throughout the book? What separates heroes from other people? How does an ordinary person become a hero?

11. After the plane crash, Scott meets many different people --- JJ, Eleanor, Doug, Layla, Gus, Bill --- who want different things from him. How do these characters affect Scott and his personal journey?

12. In many ways, Scott has been a passive observer rather than an active participant in life. In what ways does the crash change how he relates to the world around him and his sense of self?

13. Why does Bill Cunningham seem determined to pursue conspiracy theories regarding the crash?

The Diver's Clothes Lie Empty January 2017

January 2017 Book selection

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group will meet Thursday, January 12th at 7 p.m. to discuss our January book, The Diver’s Clothes Lie Empty by Vendela Vida.

Discussion questions are below.

Here are some links for additional background and information:

Punctuated equilibrium description

Ethics of surrogacy

NYTimes video of 36 hours in Casablanca

What is the nature of identity?

Audio of Vendela Vida interview with Michael Krasny

Coming up, we have the following books to look forward to reading:

Thurs. Feb. 9             The Sellout by Paul Beatty

Thus. Mar. 9              The Tsar of Love and Techno by Anthony Marra

(One Book/One Marin selection)

Thanks for reading with us. I look forward to seeing you at the Fairfax Library.

Beth Bailey-Gates

Friends of the Fairfax Library

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

The Diver’s Clothes Lie Empty by Vendela Vida

1.      The unnamed protagonist is a twin. In what ways is the twin metaphor used throughout the book? Does the fact that she is a fraternal twin make any difference?

2.      What effect does the author using the second person have on your reading of the novel?

3.      How does the novel relate a search for self?

4.      It may be hard to understand why the protagonist does the things she does in the novel such as taking someone else’s backpack and using that person’s credit card. Did your feelings about those actions change after learning about the birth of her niece and husband’s infidelity?

5.      On page 95, the red-haired bodyguard explains his interest in Darwin and “punctuated equilibrium” saying, “There are periods in evolution when species are in stasis because there’s no need for change. But then, usually because of a change in their environment, they have to adapt rapidly. That’s how new species come about.”  How does this information affect the protagonist?

6.      What is the nature of identity? Is it what people call you? What makes you “you”? Is it based on place – where you lived and live or the community in which you live or something else? How does acting play into identity?

7.      What affect does the location of the novel, Casablanca, have on your impressions of the story? Would the story have worked in other locations?

8.      The Diver’s Clothes Lie Empty is a novel about many things, including loss. What losses has the narrator endured?

9.      We recently read Outline by Rachel Cusk in which the main character remains nameless for most of the book and is recently divorced. Are there any other comparisons between the novels?

10.  Have you ever wanted to or tried to re-invent yourself?

The Diver’s Clothes Lying Empty on the Beach

You’re sitting here with us, but you’re also out walking

in a field at dawn. You are yourself

the animal we hunt when you come with us on the hunt.

You’re in your body like a plant is solid in the ground,

yet you’re the wind. You’re the diver’s clothes

lying empty on the beach. You’re the fish.

In the ocean are many bright strands

and many dark strands like veins that are seen

when a wing is lifted up.

Your hidden self is blood in those, those veins

that are lute strings that make ocean music,

not the sad edge of surf, but the sound of no shore.

Packing for Mars - April 2013

April 2013 Book Selection

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group will meet  Tuesday, April 16th at 7 p.m. in the meeting room of the Fairfax Library to discuss our April book: Packing for Mars by Mary Roach.

(Please note new day and date this month)

Discussion questions are below.

Here are some links for additional background and information:

The Daily Show interview with Mary Roach

Wikipedia article about Pascal Lee

News article about Devon Island and some Mars Society FAQs

Video tour of the International Space Station

After this month, we’re back to our normal second Thursday of the month meeting time.

Coming up, we have the following book to look forward to reading:

Thurs., May 9           The Sandcastle Girls by Chris Bohjalian

Bohjalian powerfully narrates an intricately nuanced romance with a complicated historical event at the forefront. With the centennial of the Armenian genocide fast approaching, this is not to be missed. Simply astounding….. Library Journal

Thanks for reading with us. I look forward to seeing you at the Fairfax Library.

Beth Bailey-Gates

Friends of the Fairfax Library

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Packing for Mars by Mary Roach

1.    Did you or someone you know want to become an astronaut when you were a kid? Has this book changed your view of what it would be like? How?

2.    What do you think is the hardest part about being an astronaut? Easiest?

3.    Potential astronauts are observed for a number of days in close quarters with other candidates to see how they cope in stressful situations. How do you think you would fare in this type of experiment? Would you make it to the end? What type of personality traits would you need to make it through?

4.    When Mary Roach visits the Flight Analogs Research Unit, she meets people who are paid to lie in bed to simulate the body’s degradations during space flight. Besides the money, why would people be interested in becoming human guinea pigs? Would you consider trying this?

5.    Roach talks about the first test flights using rhesus monkeys after World War II. What do you think of this type of animal testing? Was it necessary? How could it have been different?

6.    Why do you think humans are so fascinated by the prospect of visiting Mars and beyond? What is it about the unknown that is so intriguing?

7.    Why do you think nations glorify astronauts? Do they risk more than people in other dangerous professions?

8.    Cultural differences can cause major problems on space flights. How do you think space agencies should deal with these differences? How can people from various national backgrounds be taught to understand other cultures?

9.    How do you think the space program will progress in the future? Do you think we should try to reach the outer limits of visible space?

10. Roach ends her work very optimistically about the future of space travel. After reading about all the dangers and costs associated with space travel, do you think it is worth it?

11. Most reviewers have talked about the humor in Mary Roach's book, a number using the word "hilarious." What do you find particularly funny in Packing for Mars? Does her humor enhance her narrative...or, as one lonely reader thought, become tiresome and distracting?

12. Does this book's irreverent look at space travel deflate your balloon—reverence you may have felt for the men and women who don space suits and enter the zone of zero gravity? Does the book bring astronauts back down to earth a bit too precipitously for your taste? In other words, has Mary Roach made human space travel a noble endeavor...or an absurd one?

13. Talk about the toll that zero gravity has on humans—biologically and psychologically. What is the most difficult challenge for long-term manned (or womanned) space travel?

14. After having read this book, and knowing how space travel affects the human body and its bodily functions, would you, if given a chance, want to go into space? Of all the problems/issues Roach describes—biological, social, psychological—which would be the hardest for you?

15. Did this book alter—or confirm—your view of NASA and the people who devote their lives to space travel? Do you feel differently about the entire space program—its long-range goals and its costs?

16. Should the U.S. continue its efforts to travel to Mars? With humans...or robots?

17. What were some of the things that most surprised you in reading Roach's book? Which chapters did you find most interesting...and why?

18. Of the former astronauts Roach interviewed, do any, in particular, stand out—some you admire more than others or found more engaging?

19. Do you think some of Roach's interview questions are too close to the bone—too personal or probing? Or do you think her inteview technique enables her to uncover valuable and heretofore unkown information?

One Amazing Thing - January 2013

January 2013 Book Selection

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group will meet Thursday, January 10th at 7 p.m. in the meeting room of the Fairfax Library to discuss our January book: One Amazing Thing by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni.

Discussion questions are below.

Here are some links for additional background and information:

A nice, succinct analysis of Chaucer’s work

TED talk by author Chimamanda Adachie  titled, “The Danger of a Single Story” (about 18  minutes long)

TheMoth is an amazing program that encourages regular people to get up and tell their story (usually in 10 minutes or less.) They’re very compelling.

If you use iTunes you can download their podcasts. You can also watch some of the stories on YouTube.

Beautiful time-lapse video of an Aurora Borealis

Coming up, we have the following titles to look forward to reading:

Please note that the next 3 meetings will be held on Tuesdays!

Tues., February 12   The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell

Tues., March 12        Train Dreams by Denis Johnson

Tues., April 16          Packing for Mars by Mary Roach (OneBook/One Marin selection)

Thanks for reading with us. I look forward to seeing you at the Fairfax Library.

Beth Bailey-Gates

Friends of the Fairfax Library

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

One Amazing Thing by Chitra Divakaruni

1. If you were to tell the story of one amazing thing that had happened in your life, what would it be? Would it be a memory of a gift, an experience, a person that you met, or an event that you witnessed? What made it amazing, and how did it change your life?

2. Would the experience of reading One Amazing Thing have been different had the narrative been from the point of view of just one person, or if the story was told by an outside figure removed from the events in the book?

3. If you were trapped in a similar dangerous situation as the characters in One Amazing Thing, how do you think you’d react? Was there an action or behavior by a character that resonated with you?

4. Out of the nine people in the visa office, did you identify with any in particular? Which one(s) and why?

5. Why was each character’s “one amazing thing” remarkable?

6. The book begins and ends with Uma Sinha, the graduate student. Why did the author choose Uma’s story to “bookend” the novel in this way? What about Uma set her apart from the members of the group, in your mind?

7. Which character’s story did you find the most unexpected? Conversely, were you able to predict what was to happen in any of the stories?

8. Refresh your memory with the stories of the female characters in the book. Did these stories have anything in common?

9. “Apologize to a woman and she would gain the upper hand. Mangalam knew better than to let that happen” (pg. 55). What did you first think of Mr. Mangalam, and did this change after you learned his story?

10. Discuss Mr. and Mrs. Pritchett. Were you surprised, as their stories unfolded, to discover their reasons for going to India?

11. Almost all of the characters experience or perpetuate some kind of cultural misunderstanding. What did you learn about some of the cultures and religions explored in the book?

12. What did you think of the book’s ending? What do you think the group’s fate was? Why did Uma’s story end where it did?

13. When writing of ethnicity, an author risks stereotyping. Uma is an American Indian girl who rebels against her parents’ wishes by having a relationship with a non-Indian man. Tariq is a young rebellious bearded Muslim, prone to violence. How does Divakaruni attempt to flesh out these characters? Are they three dimensional, or caricatures?

14. The symbol of the tiger crosses over between two stories in the novel. Mr. Pritchett speaks of his boyhood remembering, “Should anyone ask him what he wanted most in life, the boy wouldn’t hesitate. A dog, he would say-though this is not completely true. He would prefer a tiger.”1 When he finds the kitten, “he thinks it looks like a miniature tiger” In the next story, Malathi describes the dark secrets of the rich which the beauty parlor girl were privy to. She states, “we knew that to meddle in the affairs of the powerful was akin to riding the proverbial tiger”. What does Divakaruni’s use of the Tiger represent?

15. One Amazing Thing is a novel with an open ending. How did this affect your reading of the book? As a reader, did you choose to create your own ending?

16. The stories shared by the characters show how easy it is to divert young lives into unforeseen and restrictive channels, and how hard it is for people to realize their early dreams.. Do you think this is true for most people?

17. In One Amazing Thing, the different characters respond in very different ways to being trapped in a dangerous situation that is out of their control. Can you describe some of these responses? What kinds of people seem to respond most positively in such circumstances? What kinds of people respond most negatively? Are there mental habits we can learn that would allow us to deal better with such circumstances, should they occur in our lives? What do you have in your pockets or purse now that would help in a survival situation?

18. Language is an important theme in the book. Jiang surprises her granddaughter, Lily, by speaking English to tell her story. Why would she hide the fact that she speaks English in an American city from even her family? Malathi speaks English but asks Mangalam to translate from her native Tamil, but warns him that she’ll know if he changes her story. Uma is reading Chaucer’s tales which are written in Middle English, a language that bridges modern English with Old English. How does language identify people? Is it helpful or even important to be multi-lingual?

19. There are several stories in the book about love and marriage. Do any of the characters marry for love? What are the reasons people get married? Should you get married if you love someone? Are there any stories of unrequited love? Malathi says she would rather be a bride maker rather than a bride. Mrs. Pritchett said, “She’s ready to take a little risk, to follow the yellow brick road into romance and a house on a hill with all-white carpeting” (182). Was the young Vivienne (Mrs. Pritchett) making the right decision? Mangalam keeps a photo of his wife on his desk because his employers have told him that “It would make the Americans who came to the office feel more comfortable [ . . .] since Americans believed that the presence of a smiling family on a man’s table was proof of his moral stability” Do you believe this to be true?

20. Why did the author choose to have some of the character’s “amazing” stories told in the third person?

The Sense of An Ending

December 2012 Book Selection

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group will meet Thursday, December 13th at 7 p.m. in the meeting room of the Fairfax Library to discuss our December book: The Sense of An Ending by Julian Barnes.

Discussion questions are below.

Here are some links for additional background and information:

NY Times Obituary for literary critic Frank Kermode, author of The Sense of An Ending

Some videos of the Severn Bore

The Wobbly Bridge in London (aka the Millenium Bridge)

An interesting analysis of the “mathematical” equation in Adrian’s diary

Wikipedia investigation into the meaning of “peripeteia”

Coming up, we have the following titles to look forward to reading:

Thurs. January 10    One Amazing Thing by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

Tues. February 12    The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell

Tues. March 12         Train Dreams by Denis Johnson

Thanks for reading with us. I look forward to seeing you at the Fairfax Library.

Beth Bailey-Gates

Friends of the Fairfax Library

Discussion Questions

The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes

1. What does the title mean to you?

2. The novel opens with a handful of water-related images. What is the significance of each? How does Barnes use water as a metaphor?

3. The phrase “Eros and Thanatos,” or sex and death, comes up repeatedly in the novel. What did you take it to mean?

4. At school, Adrian says, “we need to know the history of the historian in order to understand the version that is being put in front of us” (p. 13). How does this apply to Tony’s narration?

5. Did Tony love Veronica? How did his weekend with her family change their relationship?

6. When Mrs. Ford told Tony, “Don’t let Veronica get away with too much” (p. 31), what did she mean? Why was this one sentence so important?

7. Veronica accuses Tony of being cowardly, while Tony considers himself peaceable. Whose assessment is more accurate?

8. What is the metaphor of the Severn Bore? Why does Tony’s recollection of Veronica’s presence change?

9. Why did Tony warn Adrian that Veronica “had suffered damage a long way back?” (p. 46). What made him suspect such a thing? Do you think he truly believed it?

10. In addition to Adrian’s earlier statement about history, Barnes offers other theories: Adrian also says, “History is that certainty produced at the point where the imperfections of memory meet the inadequacies of documentation” (p. 18), and Tony says, “History isn’t the lies of the victors . . .It’s more the memories of the survivors, most of whom are neither victorious nor defeated” (p. 61). Which of these competing notions do you think is most accurate? Which did Tony come to believe?

11. Discuss the character Margaret. What role does she play in Tony’s story?

12. Why does Mrs. Ford make her bequest to Tony, after so many years? And why does Veronica characterize the £500 as “blood money”?

13. After rereading the letter he sent to Adrian and Veronica, Tony claims to feel remorse. Do you believe him? What do his subsequent actions tell us?

14. When Veronica refuses to turn over the diary to Tony, why doesn’t he give up? Why does he continue to needle her for it?

15. What is Tony’s opinion of himself? Of Adrian? How do both opinions change by the end of the novel?

16. How does the revelation in the final pages change your understanding of Veronica’s actions?

17. Discuss the closing lines of the novel: “There is accumulation. There is responsibility. And beyond these, there is unrest. There is great unrest” (p. 163).

18. Would you describe Tony Webster as an "unreliable yet sincere narrator"? What do you think of Tony Webster? Is your impression at odds with what Tony Webster thinks of Tony Webster? Do you know anyone who’s like him? Does he remind you of you? When did it occur to you that Tony is not a trustworthy witness to his own life? That you may know more about him than he does? How does Barnes achieve this effect?

19. To what extent do you think Julian Barnes uses “peripeteia,” the unexpected twist in plot, to encourage the reader to adjust their expectations?

20. The Sense of an Ending is a novel about the imperfections of memory. What insight does it give the reader into ageing and memory?

21. Is the ending unforeseen, does it leave you with a sense of unease?

22. There are several references in the book to Ted Hughes - the poet who famously destroyed sections of the diaries of his ex-wife Sylvia Plath after her suicide (as Veronica destroys Adrian's diary). The world was furious at Hughes; they deserved clear answers, they insisted, and believed that the missing pages of the diaries would cast a crucial light onto the final state of mind of their beloved literary genius. But Plath and Hughes's children deserved protection, Hughes argued, and that need was paramount to history's need for clear answers - or, more cynically, to its simple curiosity to "know what happened." They deserved protection from the violence of their mother's final state of mind, Hughes argued. Is Tony being grossly insensitive by demanding to know "the truth" when a greater reality is at stake: the feelings of Veronica, her mother Susan, and Adrian Jr, who were far more affected by Adrian's life than he ever was?

Characters. What about Veronica (called “Mary” like the Madonna?), Adrian, Margaret and Sarah? (Sarah as in Old Testament Sarah who gave birth in her old age?) Do you agree with Tony’s assessment of them? This is a narrator who has edited his life so he can live with himself. What has he left out? Clearly his feelings about Veronica were more complex than he’s let on. What do you think their relationship was really like?
 Images. The novel opens with them. We can’t get wrists out of our minds: the watch worn facing inwards, Veronica wanking, Adrian’s suicide. And then semen sluicing down the drain, contrasting with the upstream tidal wave. The Thames and the bloody bathwater. What image or scene in the novel has stayed with you? Did Tony forget or did he fail to mention something that happened while they were watching the Severn Bore?

Style. Tony Webster is your classic unreliable narrator: his memory is faulty, his credibility wonky. (Julian Barnes has cited the unreliable narrator classic, The Good Soldier by Ford Madox Ford. Read it, it’s harrowing. So what IS a reliable narrator? Isn’t anything first-person dubious?)