Devolution (Brooks) - Discussion Questions

Discussion Questions
We'll add publisher questions if and when they're available; in the meantime, use our LitLovers Book Club Resources. They can help with discussions for any book:

1. Max Brooks writes: "I will let you judge for yourself if the following pages seem reasonably plausible." Do they? Does the premise of the novel—that Bigfoot exists—feel plausible to you? Why or why not?

2. Who, or what, are the Sasquatches, as portrayed in Devolution? Do you believe they exist? Does Max Brooks?

3. What was your experience reading Devolution? Did you find it suspenseful, frightening, gory, instructive? Something else? Or were you left, well… unmoved?

4. Talk about the tech-pioneers who formed the utopian community of Greenloop? What is their hope moving into a primeval rain forest—while still remaining linked to civilization by internet? Do you sympathize with their idealism, find them naive, or maybe hypocritical?

5. Whom in the novel are you most irritated by or impatient with? Which character do you most admire?

6. After Rainier's eruption, how and why does Mostar begin preparing for catastrophe—even though Greenloop is miles from the volcano and undamaged? Why is she the only community member who worries, while the rest remain blissfully unaware and unprepared?

7. What do you think of Brooks's use of Kate Holland's diary. Along with the fact that is the "first-hand account" mentioned in the book's subtitle, what else does it add? Does the diary enhance the story? Do you feel it builds suspense or does it drag down the pace? Also, what do you think of Kate, herself?

8. Brooks is known for his zombie survival guides. How does this book double as a survival manual? What is the advice it offers people living through cataclysmic events?

9. The novel also takes pot shots at society—at bad behavior, not just on the part of the Sasquatches but also on the part of humans. What social criticism does Brooks offer about the larger society?

10. Should this book be classified as fiction or nonfiction? Joke there… though not to some: Bigfoot has a devoted following, people who are absolutely convinced Bigfoot exists. Why such intensely passionate followers? Why do people continue to insist on Bigfoot/Yeti's existence? Any ideas? Are you a devotee? Do you know people who are?

(Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online and off, with attribution. Thanks.)

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