Only Child: A novel

by Rhiannon Navin

  Acknowledgments

  Everyone in my camp, on my team—I am so grateful you came along on this crazy, new journey with me.

  Thank you to the extended Carr and Navin families for believing in me and supporting me, most notably:

  My mother, Ursula Carr, for passing down her fierce love of books and for pushing me to “finally use one of the many talents you have!”

  Brad, my husband and best friend, who encourages me in every endeavor and whose idea it was in the first place.

  Thank you to my children, Samuel, Garrett, and Frankie, the loves of my life, for being my focus group and for sharing me with Zach all those months.

  I want to thank my friends and first readers for reading and rereading drafts, making suggestions, and cheering me on, especially Swati Jagetia and Jackie Comp.

  Allison K Williams—where do I begin with you? I am eternally grateful to you for teaching me the ropes and for being by my side every step of the way. I’m so lucky that I found you and I hope I get to meet you in person one day! Let’s do this again soon!

  Thank you to my amazing team at Folio Literary Management. Jeff Kleinman, you are a rock star! Thank you, Jamie Chambliss and Melissa Sarver.

  Huge thanks to my editor, Carole Baron. I couldn’t have asked for a kinder, more knowledgeable, and patient editor—what an honor to get to work with you! Thank you, Sonny Mehta, for your support. Genevieve Nierman, my fellow crazy cat lady, thank you for taking care of all the details, big and small. Kristen Bearse, I’m in love with your beautiful design of the book, and many thanks to the talented Jenny Carrow for designing a phenomenal book jacket. Ellen Feldman, I am grateful that you kept us honest in the process of bookmaking. Thank you, Danielle Plafsky, Gabrielle Brooks, and Nick Latimer for working tirelessly to deliver Zach’s story into the hands of readers.

  I must also thank Mary Pope Osborne for writing the most wonderful, magical series of children’s books—the Magic Tree House series. You’ve made it easy for my children to fall in love with books, too.

  The Voracious Reader and Anderson’s Book Shop—my favorite indie bookstores and places to bring my kids: your love and passion for books is contagious and reverberates throughout our community.

  A NOTE ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Rhiannon Navin grew up in Bremen, Germany, in a family of book-crazy women. Her career in advertising brought her to New York, where she worked for several large agencies before becoming a full-time mother and writer. She now lives outside New York City with her husband, three children, two cats, and a dog. Only Child is her first novel.

  Reading Group Guide

  Only Child by Rhiannon Navin

  The questions, discussion topics, and reading list that follow are intended to enhance your reading group’s discussion of Only Child, the debut novel by Rhiannon Navin.

  QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION

  1. In the opening lockdown scene, Zach repeatedly focuses on external sensations—the smell of Miss Russell’s breath, the stuffiness in the closet, the popping sounds coming from the hallway. What does this tell us about how Zach perceives the world? What insight does it give us into who he is as a child, and as a narrator?

  2. After overcoming her shock, Zach’s mom campaigns against the parents of the shooter in an attempt to hold them accountable for their son’s actions. Do you agree with her, or do you think she is out of line?

  3. Reading the Magic Tree House books aloud “to Andy” helps Zach cope with his grief. Which books have helped you through difficult times in your life?

  4. In their review of Only Child, Kirkus Reviews said of the Magic Tree House series, “Seems like a lot of people, and not just the ones in this novel, need to reread those books.” What are the “secrets to happiness”? Do you try to live by these rules? How do you think you could incorporate them into your daily life?

  5. Zach uses colors to help him understand his emotions better. What do you think about Zach’s justifications for his choices? Which colors would use to represent your emotions? Do you think colors have an impact on your mood?

  6. On this page, Zach says, “People start to forget about you after you die and they can’t see you all the time anymore. It was already happening with Andy. I started to notice that at his funeral that was on the day after the wake. Everyone was talking about Andy, but they talked about him like they only remembered some parts of him, not all the parts… . It was like they weren’t really talking about Andy or they were starting to forget about what he was like.” Do we do a disservice to our loved ones when we only remember them at their best?

  7. Do you think Zach should have returned to school earlier, or that he was sent back before he was ready? What role does Miss Russell play in helping Zach heal? Do you think Zach learns to trust school as a safe place again?

  8. Zach suffers from survivor’s guilt after Andy’s death, feeling that everyone might have been happier if he’d died instead. How does Aunt Mary help Zach work through these feelings? What does she teach him about family?

  9. Zach’s TV interview is traumatic for him. If you were in his mom’s position, would you have put Zach on camera? Why did she insist, and why didn’t any of the other adults intervene?

  10. What do you make of Zach’s perceived betrayal by Dexter? Did Dexter fail Zach when he needed a friend most, or was he just doing his job? Do you think Zach sees the situation more or less clearly because he’s a child?

  11. If you had to trade places with any of the characters, who would it be? Why? Who would you least like to trade places with?

  12. According to the Gun Violence Archive (http://www.gunviolencearchive.org), nearly four thousand children and teens were hurt or killed by gun violence in 2017. Do you think there is anything we could be doing to prevent these injuries and deaths?

  13. Many books have been written about school shootings but none from the point of view of such a young child. Why do you think the author wrote this book from Zach’s perspective instead of an adult’s? Did having such a young narrator teach you anything new about surviving tragedy?

  14. If you could give Zach one piece of advice to help guide him as he grows up, what would it be?

  SUGGESTED READING

  Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult

  We Need To Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver

  Room by Emma Donoghue

  The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon

  The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

  After You by JoJo Moyes

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