I also believe that our own experiences are better understood by hearing others’ stories or in reading a story that touches our heart. Telling stories is the way we come to know and love one another. If we can look at the larger tapestry of life, instead of just the single threads of individual events, we begin to see how our lives intersect and connect. We notice meaningful patterns that weren’t originally apparent. When life is viewed as an interesting story, it becomes an adventure. As the saying goes, truth is stranger than fiction.
CONVERSATION GUIDE
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
1. Do you agree with Riley that book clubs foster compassion for others and a sense of community? What do you get out of your book club?
2. Patti Callahan Henry mentions some of her favorite novels in Driftwood Summer. What are some of your favorites?
3. The two older sisters—Riley and Maisy—suffer from an estrangement in their relationship that began when they both fell in love with the same boy. Have you ever had a relationship—with a sister, a brother or a best friend—that fell apart over a love interest?
4. Kitsy Sheffield, the girls’ mother, asks Riley not to tell the other sisters about her illness until the party is over. Why do you think she wants to keep it secret? If you were Riley, could you have kept this information from your sisters?
5. At the end of the novel, Maisy says, “I always thought there was this life; you know, this other life. . . . It was a life I thought existed in a parallel plane, and I couldn’t get to it.” What do you think she means? Have you ever felt that way?
6. Many people in the novel talk about Riley’s carefree confidence and tomboy ways as a girl, and how she has changed since high school. Why do you think she has changed so dramatically? Do you think she’ll ever rediscover the less restrained Riley again? Is it inevitable that we bury certain parts of ourselves as we become adults?
7. Mama’s cancer changes the way Riley looks at their relationship. Has impending death ever changed the way you looked at a particular relationship? At life in general?
8. To both older sisters, Mack Logan represents a youthful time in their lives. Do you have someone who represents such a time in your life? Do you feel you’ve idealized him or her? Do you keep in touch?
9. Maisy and Adalee both suggest that Riley lives vicariously through fiction rather than engaging fully in reality. Do you think the accusation is fair? Could you be accused of the same thing?
10. Describe what you think happens to each of the main characters during the year after Driftwood Summer ends. What happens to the bookstore?
11. Share some of your memories of spending summers at the beach.
12. Of the three sisters, which do you like best? Least? Why?
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