There is always a Time and a Place...Discuss

Well, it's Tuesday night. I would have had these questions posted sooner this evening but I must admit that I got sucked into some television programming. Not to mention a very adorable, just freshly spayed kitty, all nestled in my lap. Anyway, here I am now posting away. Being as how this book has been a part of book clubs before, I found plenty of discussion questions. I have a couple of my own to add, but not many.

Let's go over the logistics real fast.

TIME: 8:00PM (don't forget parking stinks around here. if you need help call me!!! i will send my phone number around in an email)

PLACE: My apartment again (address to follow in an email as well. if directions are needed, please contact me)

MISC: Coffee will be supplied. Same as last time, bring any goodies that you would like to gorge on.

LET THE DISCUSSION BEGIN: (The first three are from the Barnes and Nobel website and I managed to muster the last two.)

1. In a novel so suffused with guilt, how is Michael guilty? Does his narrative serve as a
way of putting himself on trial? What verdict does he reach? Is he asking readers to examine the evidence he presents and to condemn him or exonerate him? Or has he already condemned himself?

2. Why does Hanna twice ask the judge, "what would you have done?" Is the judge sympathetic toward Hanna? What is she trying to communicate in the moment when she turns and looks directly at him?

3. How does this novel leave you feeling and thinking? Is it hopeful or ultimately despairing?

4. Do you feel that they way in which the narrator jumps through different time periods in his life inhibits you from ever really knowing or caring about him? Does this have the same effect on the way you feel about Hanna?

5. In reading this novel I constantly felt that something was just a bit amiss. Could this be a result of the translation or do you think that author intends to make his audience feel a bit disoriented?

Alright folks, there you have it. Mull over these if you wish. We may use them, or we may not.

See you all Thursday at 8:00.