Children

I've read "Little Children" by this same author, and a theme in that book was how the adults mostly behaved in ways that were rationally indistinct from how the little kids behaved, even though the adults had this veneer of maturity and rationality covering their behaviors. I'm wondering if something similar is going on here with the way the author seems to give the adults and the kids similar voices, as if to underline that they are all really the same, differing only in age.

Cheating

I started to write a post about the pervasive infidelity in the book (Mr. M., Mr. Dexter, Paul and Tammy's dad —— and Tracy's dad?). Why is everyone being unfaithful? But then it occurred to me that there's a broader theme of "cheating" in the book, especially with all the election shenanigans —— cheating for thrills, cheating out of desperation, cheating to win, cheating to spite, being unfaithful to others, being unfaithful to oneself, one's values. I don't know. Is the whole "election" concept maybe some metaphor for how we make choices, how we "elect" to live our lives and then try to rationalize those largely irrational decisions?

Narrative voices

What did you think of the narrative voices? Were the styles distinct enough to ring true as individuals? Do you think the high school students' voices were done well? I'll go ahead and say that I found the voices almost too similar, but also that it didn't bother me because the story was so engaging.

Characters

Was there any character in the book to whom you were not sympathetic?

The candidates

Whom would you have voted for, in high school and now?

Kim's pick

"A black comedy about a high school history teacher who attempts to sabotage a manipulative, overly-ambitious girl's campaign to become school president."

New pick!

"The Sense of an Ending" by Julian Barnes

Next pick: Queen of the Nile!

I've been wanting to read this for some time. Hope it lives up to the crazy praise it has garnered.

Dystopia

What did you think of the futuristic society in the final chapter, with everyone's opinions for sale and everyone communicating through "handsets" and the constant whir of helicopters overhead?

Goon

I thought this was interesting (from Wikipedia):

In one story, a character named Bosco declares: "Time's a goon, right?", referring to the way that time and fate cruelly rob most of the book's characters of their youth, innocence and success. As Bosco complains: "How did I go from being a rock star to being a fat fuck no one cares about?" Some of the book's characters do end up finding happiness, but it is always a limited happiness, and it is rarely in the form that they intended. In an interview, Egan explained that "time is the stealth goon, the one you ignore because you are so busy worrying about the goons right in front of you."

Points of view

Did you like how each chapter had a different narrator or focus? Which character was your favorite or the most interesting to you?

Next pick

"A Visit from the Goon Squad" by Jennifer Egan

Bryson's voice

How did the experience of reading Bryson compare with the experience of listening to him? (When I went online to buy "Notes From a Small Island," I ended up buying the abridged version as part of the Bill Bryson "collection" because the unabridged version was narrated by someone else and I didn't want to listen to someone else read his stuff.)

Terra incognita

Bryson begins the book with the observation that we know almost nothing about Australia, that all manner of interesting and crazy thing happens there (prime ministers vanishing into the surf) or can be found there (deadly critters galore), and yet we never hear a word. Two questions: (1) What's the most interesting/surprising thing you discovered about Australia in the book? and (2) Did the book alter your preconception of the country?

Of all the places

Of all the Australian cities, sites and natural wonders that Bryson visits, which would you most like to see?

Next pick

The characters

There were so many real-life figures who made cameo appearances in the book. Since you did some research on these, were there any that were particularly notable or interesting?

The books

I think the only Henry James works I've read are "The Turn of the Screw" and "The Aspern Papers," but it was still fascinating to read about the supposed inspirations for his work during this time period. Did any particularly strike you as interesting? Did it start to sound as though he never had any original ideas since he seemed to be copying all his characters and situations from real life?

The women

There were a series of women in James's life -- especially his sister, Minny Temple, Constance Fenimore Woolson -- who have a tremendous influence on his life and then meet with tragedy. And in each case, he seems to have failed them in some way that may have contributed to their deaths. What do you make of this?

Henry James

What did you think of how Coibin portrayed Henry James? Did it jibe with what you already knew/thought about him? What did you think of how he hinted at James's (probable) closeted sexuality?