answer to questionsSometimes we want answers to life's profound questions. Why am I here? What's my purpose?

Sometimes we just want them for Book Club.

Here at LitLovers, we get a fair number of emails, asking for the answers to our Discussion Questions. Here's the latest :

Tim writes
We talked about American War by Omar al Akkad in my book group the other day, using the discussion questions found on LitLovers. The group couldn't decide on the best answers to some, so I'm writing to see if you have any answers for them?

I'm sorry, Tim, we don't. Sometimes, the questions are issued by the publishers, as they are with American War; more often, at LITLOVERS we end up writing our own for a particular book. In either case, we don't have specific answers.

Confession: Sometimes we don't even have answers to our OWN questions.

It's anybody's take, really, because the questions are designed to be OPEN ENDED—to stimulate discussion. They're not meant to have a single right answer but to result in different possibilities.

Book clubs tell us that their best discussions are those with different viewpoints, each one as legitimate as the next. It's what makes conversations about books so rewarding: I say PO-TAY-TOE … you say PO-TAH-TOE.

Even authors acknowledge that readers bring different interpretations to a book that they'd never considered. That doesn't make those ideas—or readers—wrong.

On the contrary, new meanings—created through the act of reading, by individual readers—make literature all the richer. Luminaries like Peter Carey and Margaret Atwood, both Man Booker Prize winners (Peter Carey twice!), have told us as much.

So the point is … you DON'T (really) WANT answers to book club questions. That would ruin the fun.

same old same old4Read a book. Discuss the book. Read a book. Discuss the book. Read a bo … yeah, yeah.

Monotous? Maybe. The other day I received an email asking for book ideas paired with activities surrounding cooking, music, and gardening …or anything else that might perk up the meeting.

We came up with a few ideas. If you've got any others, we'd love to hear.

1. Sourdough by Robin Sloan: discuss the book, then…

…bake sourdough loaves using live culture. Or bake the bread first… then discuss the book AFTER you pop the bread in the oven.

2. Lab Girl by Hope Jaren or
    The Signature of All Things by Elizabeth Gilbert: discuss the book, then…

…set up a potting table with pots, potting soil, spades, etc., and have members plant individual tree saplings or some sort of outdoor plant (everyone could even name their plant for a favorite novel or character: Anatomy of a Miracle, H is for Hyacynth; The Secret Life of Violet Grant; Upstart Lizzie Bennet).

3. American Wolf by Nate Blakeslee: discuss the book then…

…watch a National Geographic wolf documentary on YouTube: She Wolf is good (the wolf featured in the film is the same female wolf ,"0-6," featured in the book); Living with Wolves: Jim and Jamie Dutcher is good, too.

4. Last Days of Night by Graham Moore: discuss the book, then…

…watch PBS's American Experience: Tesla or BBC's Nikola Tesla. OR...make an easy electric motor (see instructions on YouTube or... invite a physics teacher to demonstrate how one is made. They're so cool: my husband made one for me years and years ago!)

5.  Bel Canto by Ann Patchet: discuss the book, then…

…listen to recordings, or watch videos, of Renee Flemming (on whom Patchet based her book; they're friends) OR...invite a singer/voice teacher to demonstrate operatic techniques: opera singers NEVER use mikes (unlike Broadway singers) yet even their softest notes can be heard in a 2,500 seat concert hall—an astonishing feat requiring years of study.

6. The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George: discuss the book, then…

…set up a one-night "bookshop": members bring anywhere from, say, 3 to 5 books to exchange with others OR consider setting up a "Little Free Library" somewhere OR, like Monsieur Perdu, have members bring one book and talk about how that particular book helped them cope with a difficult problem or period in their lives.



generic-mystery-questionsWe get lots of mail asking for Discussion Questions for mysteries, and there've been a lot of them lately—emails AND new crime novels (all claiming to be the "new" Gone Girl).

Sadly, for book clubs, authors or publishers don't often issue questions for mysteries—for a couple of reasons:

Specific questions tend to give away the plot, ruining the element of surprise. Remember, mysteries depend on withholding information.

Bestselling crime novels aren't considered "book club" material. They're all about plot and don't necessarily open themselves up to discussions about character dynamics or weighty social issues. Major serial authors like James Patterson, Michael Connelly, J.D. Robb, David Baldacci write for different reasons and audiences.

So we've got our own questions below. Feel free to use them or access them here.

Questions for Mystery - Crime - Suspense - Thrillers




4. Good crime writers also tease us with red-herrings—false clues—to purposely lead us astray? Does your author try to throw you off track? If so, were you tripped up?


a. Do they enhance the story, add complexity, and build suspense?

b. Are they plausible or implausible?

c. Do they feel forced and gratuitous—inserted merely to extend the story?



a. Is the conclusion probable or believable?



d. Perhaps it's too predictable.

e. Can you envision a different or better ending?

8. Point to passages in the book—ideas, descriptions, or dialogue—that you found interesting or revealing, that somehow struck you. What, if anything, made you stop and think? Or maybe even laugh.

9. Overall, does the book satisfy? Does it live up to the standards of a good crime story or suspense thriller? Or does it somehow fall short?

10. Compare this book to other mystery, crime, or suspense thrillers that you've read. Consider other authors or other books in a the series by the same author.










Book Club Calendar


"First things first,"
the ladies tell us—
NO T-shirts.
NO cigars. :-(


50 Shades—whoa!
Who knew? :-)


A nice Merlot...?
What the hell's
a Merlot?

YES! The Masters!!
But can we

Nicholas Sparks?
You're kidding.


We go "as a club"
to see The Help.
It feels, eh...girly.

A picnic. We wear
T-shirts! We
drink beer!!
We are MEN!!!


 Not one work of
REAL history—not
military, political,

 Q: What's the difference
between history and
historical fiction?

Breakthrough! What
women call Romance,
we call Soft Porn.
High Five!


Our 4th book
on Tudor England.
Shoulda seen it

Christmas party:
$150/couple plus
$35 gift. That's it,
we're outta here.
new-year3   month1-january

Who's got beer?



Book Club Calendar


Happy New Year!
Our husbands join
our club for the
first time!


Great meeting!
The guys get
along really well.
They're adorable!

No more brie and
bruschetta. They
want beer & pizza.
Um...why not?

No Nicholas Sparks.
EVER. Or they walk.
Okay...we're flexible.


Quite a year so far
...what with books
on football, golf,
& lawncare.


Two couples couldn't
find sitters—had to
bring the kids.
No problem.


Sonia watches the kids.
The rest of us discuss
Sports Illustrated...
the swimsuit issue.


Everyone shows up
with kids. There many.


Meeting cancelled.
Runny noses and
strep. The whole
club's infected.

Back together again!
Need volunteers to
watch the kids.
Men don't budge.


One kid screams,
they all scream.
Men don't hear a
thing. Not. 1. Thing.

Women & kids at home.
Men get together for
beer & pizza.
Merry Christmas.
new-year3   month1-january

Happy New Year!
We'll be devoting
the entire year to
Nicholas Sparks.
Any objections?



bcblues-leavingYou're unhappy with your book club...and another one beckons. What do you do?











bcblues-leading1It's your turn to lead the book discussion. Does any of this sound familiar? Well, it might…


The writer
isn't alone—most members will tell you that the most stressful part of a book club is leading the discussion. They'd rather have the flu … an IRS audit … a root canal.

But why?! Why make it so hard on yourselves?


Try these ideas for getting out of the Leader Trap:



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