Blessings (Juska) - Discussion Questions

Discussion Questions
(The following questions were written by Rachelle Nocito from the Haverford Township Free Library in Havertown, Pennsylvania. Thank you, Rachelle!)

1. Do you think it is symbolic that the author used the surname Blessings? Does the name reflect any aspects of the story?

2. Do you think John Blessings death was significant? How would the story have evolved if another character had died instead?

3. Why does the author jump back and forth in time? How does this narrative device impact your experience of the story?

4.  Are there equally strong female and male characters among the Blessings?

5.  Dave has a meltdown during his turn with the Town Watch group. What caused this meltdown and why did the author put this scene in the novel? Does Ann understand the depth of Dave’s meltdown?

6.  Did Helen’s move to the Senior Living Community make things easier like the kids thought it would? Did Helen have regrets over the move?

7. For her school project Megan asks her grandmother to remember events in her life and tell her story. What do you think of Helen’s life assessment? Do you agree that she has little to offer her granddaughter with her memories?

8.  How would you describe the relationship and the family lifestyle of Margie and Joe?  Are they living the family life that John Blessing may have had if he lived? Where did Margie and Joe go wrong in their marriage and how do you think their secret affected their lives?

9. Over the course of the book, the story transitions from grandparents to parents and then grandchildren. How does the passing of time and the sense of growing up and getting older evolve among the Blessings grandchildren—Elena, Abby, Stevie, Megan and their peers?
(Questions courtesy of Rachelle Nocito, Haverford Township Free Library, Havertown, PA. .)

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