1. What is special about the relationship between Lyric and Summer? How does it change during the course of the novel? 2. Lyric dreams of buying lavender dresses and lace curtains for her move to Michigan. What does this tell you about Lyric’s character and her life? 3. “Even though the teachers at Zimmerman Junior High didn’t know my family tree clear back to its roots in England the way the teachers in Virginia did, they treated me like I was a real person anyways. Some of them even made me feel special.” (p. 25) Discuss the role teachers play in Lyric’s life and how she feels about them. 4. 4. Lyric learns from reading Mark Twain “that it’s better to keep your mouth shut and appear stupid, than to open it and remove any doubt.” (p. 47) When does Lyric follow this advice? When were some times you should have done the same? 5. Lyric is very poor by our standards, but her life is rich in other areas. What are they? Discuss the things that really matter in your life. 6. Lyric is a teenager with a single parent and a sick sister she has to watch over. Any person would be overwhelmed by such responsibility. How does Lyric cope with this? 7. Lyric dreams wolves are chasing her and Summer. Lyric escapes, but she can’t save Summer. She has to let go to save herself. Judging by the dream, how does Lyric feel about the situation with Summer? 8. 8. Mama tells Poppy why she named her first child Summer: “She’ll grow up just a’sparklin’ with warmth and laughter, and the world will be a brighter place with her in it.” (p. 3) Discuss the irony of Summer’s name. It can be said that Summer burns so brightly that she burns out. What do you think about this statement? 9. The words from one of the songs Lyric listens to–Summer turns to winter/And the present disappears (p. 49)–can be seen as a metaphor for Summer’s life. Discuss the meaning of this metaphor. How does it relate to what Summer tells Lyric about her mental illness? What does this indicate about Summer’s knowledge of herself? 10. “Summer always did have funny ways about her, but I got so used to them, they seemed normal to me.” (p. 7) What are some of the odd things Summer does? Why don’t Lyric and Poppy recognize this behavior as mental illness? 11. Read aloud the scene in chapter 16 in which Summer unexpectedly shows up during the tryouts for The Mikado. Talk about the wide range of emotions Lyric feels–from anger to sadness to grief to a sense of responsibility. 12. Lyric’s family has roots in the Virginia hills that go back many generations. Yet when they are given the chance to move north, away from their home, they jump at it. Why are they so eager to move? Discuss the meaning of home in the book and in your life. How do you feel about the place where you live? 13. Seven months after the family has moved from Glory Bottom, Lyric is hard pressed to remember the faces of her kinfolk and the names of her friends. She muses that her new life has made the past fade away. Is this process inevitable? What are some of the ways people can keep continuity in their lives? 14. “‘I’ll not lie to you, Lyric,’ Dr. Solomon said seriously. ‘You won’t ever again see that pretty, vivacious teenager who was your sister.’ He didn’t have to take away all of my hope. At least he could have said, ‘Hang on.’ So I didn’t like Dr. Solomon after that, ’cause he was the man with the watch on, and he had told me the right time.” (p. 132) What does Lyric mean by this expression? When has someone told you a truth you weren’t prepared to hear? Discuss whether we are better off with a false sense of hope or the truth. Discussion questions prepared by Clifford Wohl, educational consultant. Read Less