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Billie’s mother insists that she can stand pain if she makes up her mind to (“You could stand anything for a minute, an hour a day…”) What did you think of this? How did this philosophy help or hurt Billie?
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11
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59
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July 2, 2026
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After her father dies, Billie finds she has trouble remembering his face. Her mother recalls being told, when her own mother died, that reciting the best memory of her, over and over, would help. Was a good strategy? Have you ever done something similar?
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16
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52
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July 2, 2026
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What do you understand Billie to mean when she says that people's words sometimes "echo" in her mind? Have you (or someone you know) ever had an experience like this?
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9
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63
|
July 2, 2026
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How do you think Billie's life would have turned out if her father had lived?
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24
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145
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July 2, 2026
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Billie often mentions the polka dot agate rock given to her by her friend Harriet. What do you think it means to Billie?
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19
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128
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July 2, 2026
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Beyond abject grief, what do you think of the reaction of the Enholm family and the Wiley community to the accident that claims the lives of their loved ones? Did anything about it surprise you?
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11
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74
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July 2, 2026
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What role do you think the woman Billie meets at the Garden of Eden plays in the story? As off-putting as she is, why do you think Billie is drawn to her?
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9
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56
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July 2, 2026
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Billie tests at the level of genius and reads a thick dictionary for pleasure, and yet she is naïve about some things— for example, she thinks that the Garden of Eden is the actual location where Adam and Eve once walked. How do you reconcile these two?
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16
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90
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July 2, 2026
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What did you think of the relationship between Billie and her mother? How do Billie's feelings about her mother change over the course of the novel? Does Dixie go through a similar change?
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10
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50
|
July 2, 2026
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Beyond what Billie says, why do you think she feels that she doesn't belong in the same world as anyone else she knows?
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9
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53
|
July 2, 2026
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What did you make of Billie’s awareness of a rage inside her that she first calls The Thing, later Charlotte? She wonders if there’s a Charlotte or something like a Charlotte in everyone’s life, but that people just don’t talk about it. What do you think?
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9
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51
|
July 2, 2026
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Have you read Elizabeth Hardinger’s earlier novel, All the Forgiveness? If so, how does it compare to Won’t Be Long Now?
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10
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59
|
July 2, 2026
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Once Mebel decides to take cooking classes, her first step is to decide on a cuisine to learn. What did you think of her choice? What’s your cooking experience, and which cuisine would you like to learn how to cook?
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2
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18
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May 16, 2026
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Why do you think Mebel is so intent on winning Henk back? What did you feel about her choice of how to go about it?
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9
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68
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May 16, 2026
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Gemma calls Mebel “Mebs” and at first Mebel is offended because she's used to “elders [being] treated with reverence.” (p. 99). Does Mebel receive the appropriate deference in class? How do you think her age helps or hurts her at the cooking school?
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7
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41
|
May 16, 2026
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The misspelling of her name is a big deal to Mebel, because she feels it marks her as a non-English speaker. Is she correct in her assessment about how the English-speaking world views those who don’t speak the language?
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9
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43
|
May 15, 2026
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Mebel thinks that “The more power and money [powerful men] amass, the more fragile their egos become.” (p. 262). What do you feel about this statement? Is it accurate?
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14
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80
|
May 15, 2026
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Scott tells Merritt, “[W]hen you’re the black sheep of the family, everyone is quick to judge.” (p. 278). What did you think of his statement here? Do you feel he’s correct in general, or was this specific to his own circumstances?
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5
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28
|
May 14, 2026
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Merritt doesn’t share everything with the police. She feels that once they have a suspect they become “blind to all the evidence that points a different way.” (p. 77). What do you think about her opinion here? Is she correct?
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7
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36
|
May 14, 2026
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Overall, what did you think of Happy Land? (No spoilers in this thread, please!)
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45
|
327
|
June 3, 2026
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Mebel ponders her relationship with Henk, feeling that she may have been overconfident in her assessment of her position. Do you feel she took their relationship for granted? Is there was anything she could have done to prevent Henk from leaving?
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4
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23
|
May 10, 2026
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Had you heard the term CHIP before? What did you think of Mebel giving herself this label? Why do you think she’s proud of being a CHIP at the book’s start? Do you think she still considers herself a CHIP by the end of the book?
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8
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45
|
May 9, 2026
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The World's Greatest Detective Character List
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0
|
20
|
May 7, 2026
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Paris tells Aphrodite that he’s loved Helen since they were children. He asks her, “Can first love be real? Is it childish to think the first hand I held could be the one I will hold until the end of days?” What do you think about this statement?
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7
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36
|
July 2, 2026
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Baker tells others that she feels the Colony is better for the women than sending them to prison. Do you think this is true?
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15
|
77
|
June 3, 2026
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Posters and graphics from the era
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4
|
32
|
June 3, 2026
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Which of the plot twists did you see coming, and which surprised you the most?
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26
|
201
|
July 2, 2026
|
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Overall, what did you think of The Greek House? (No spoilers, please!)
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29
|
207
|
July 2, 2026
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What did you think of the author’s interpretation of Aphrodite and the other gods? Did any of her characterizations surprise you? How would you characterize Aphrodite?
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6
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39
|
July 2, 2026
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Jed longs to be a part of the Strong family and the moonshine business. When he finally gets the chance, how does he handle it? Do you feel sorry for him? Are his feelings of being used and discarded valid? Are the women better off without him?
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19
|
81
|
July 2, 2026
|