Discussion Questions
We'll add publisher questions if and when they're available; in the meantime, use our LitLovers talking points to help start a discussion for LOVELY WAR … then take off on your own:
1. Why might Julie Berry have used the device of Olympia to tell her story of love during a time of a devastating war? Why frame her story using mythology? Does the frame work for you? Why or why not?
2. What is your familiarity with Greek mythology, especially the Arphrodite-Ares-Hephestus triangle? If you're familiar with it, how does Berry (shall we say…) "flesh it out"?
3. Talk about the immortals and their incessant bickering, snark, and competition with one another. Which diety did you find funny … sympathetic … wise? Any? None?
4. Which of the mortal couples most pulled at your heart-strings … and why? Or perhaps a fairer question would be how did both couples pull at your heartstrings? Our of the four characters, do you have a favorite?
5. Talk about the manner in which each of the two couples met. What drew them together? Consider, for instance, Hazel and James's dance in London.
6. What does the novel teach about the treatment of black troups during the war? Were you aware of the blatant prejudice African-Americans faced in the military (in World War II, as well)?
7. The horrors of trench warfare in World War I are well-known—through history lessons, oral recollections, books (fiction and nonfiction), and film portrayals. How vividly does Lovely War present those conditions? Have you gained a new perspective, perhaps a more personal one … or neither?
8. The historical war in tbis novel can also be viewed as symbolic—the ongoing battles most of us fight in our personal lives: we have our own demons to overcome, our own weaknesses, to say nothing of societal injustices, and the cruelty and seeming randomness of fate. How do the four mortal characters—Hazel, James, Aubrey, and Colette—face the tragedies and challenges in their lives?
9. The book poses the question that love wins out over war, hope over fear. Do you think so? Is this book realistic? Or is it bascially a diverting, feel-good romance. What's your take?
(Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online and off, with attribution. Thanks.)
Lovely War (Berry) - Discussion Questions
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