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Book Club: LTGWS Wrap-Up!
okay, this book was a bit of a slog in the beginning, i know i'm not the only one who had trouble getting into it, but i'm hoping the result was worth it? (sorry!)
So - thoughts? (I'm going to chime in a bit later this week, as I'm still finishing up the book - but wanted to go ahead and get this posted so we can start the discussion!)
Here are some questions to think about, courtesy of Oprah - no need to answer them all, but I'm curious to hear everyone's thoughts!
1. Let the Great World Spin is told through
the eyes of eleven different characters. What is the effect of this
chorus of voices? Why do you think the author chose to tell the story
this way? If you had to choose a single character to narrate the whole
book, who would it be, and why? What do you think might be lost, or
gained, by narrowing the story to a single perspective?
2.
As McCann explains in the author's note, the book's title comes from
"Locksley Hall," an 1835 poem by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, which was
itself inspired by a series of ancient Arabic poems. Why do you think
McCann chose to use this title for such a modern American story? What
does the title mean to you, and do you think it affects your
relationship to the book as a reader? Would this be a different novel,
do you think, if it had been called something else, like "Highwire"?
3.
The narrative takes place almost exclusively in New York City, but
could it have taken place in any other city in the world? How can this
be seen as a specifically "New York" novel, and how might it not be?
Are there ways in which the characters are emblematic of their time and
place, or is there an "everyman" quality to them?
4.
The novel opens with an extraordinary tightrope walk between the World
Trade Center towers. This is a fictionalization of a famous stunt by
Philippe Petit in August 1974?yet the tightrope walker in the novel
remains anonymous, unrelated to any of the other characters. What do
you think the effect is of weaving this historical fact into the
fiction of the other characters' stories? What do you think McCann
intends to achieve with this, and in what ways do you think he succeeds?
5.
How important do you think this historic walk is in the novel itself?
In what ways would the stories?and story?McCann is telling be different
if the novel had been set on a different day, or in a different era?
6. Do you see ways in which the tightrope might function as a metaphor, or symbol, throughout the book?
7.
In the chapter titled "This Is the House That Horse Built" we get an
intimate glimpse into the life of a New York prostitute in the 1970s.
She considers herself a failure. Do you agree with her? Or do you think
she achieves grace despite the circumstances of her life?
8. All but one of the chapters in Let the Great World Spin
are set over the course of a couple of days in early August 1974. Why
do you think McCann chose to jump thirty-two years, to 2006, for the
final chapter? In what ways do these pages add to, complicate, or even
change the story that came before? Why do you think he chose the
character of Jaslyn to tell that final piece of the story?
9. What do you think Jaslyn discovers at the end of the novel?
10.
What parallels do you see between the society of the 1970s, as McCann
depicts it in the novel, and today? How do you believe these
similarities and differences speak to the changes in America and the
world over the past several decades? Would it be fair to say that
America itself is one of the evolving characters in the novel, a
separate figure whose story is also being told?
11. Adelita says: "The thing about love is that we come alive in bodies not our own." What does she mean by this?
12.
It can be argued that Corrigan and Jazzlyn are the book's two main
characters, yet they die in the opening chapters. Why do you think
McCann chose to allow their lives to be destroyed so early in the book?
Why did he choose not to tell any of the story through their points of
view? In what ways do you think that decision makes these two people
more?or less?central and powerful in the story as a whole? Could it be
said that it is sometimes the stories not told that affect us the most?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Remember - next week is the first week of Moloka'i!
Start the book the week of 8/23 - read parts 1 & 2 (through page 136), will discuss 8/30
Start part 3 the week of 8/30 - read through part 3 (through page 251), will discuss 9/6
Start part 4 the week of 9/6 - read to the end (page 384), will discuss 9/13
Re: Book Club: LTGWS Wrap-Up!
I am also on target to finish this book in a few days. I will chime in then as well. Now that I see the discussion starters, I will pay more attention to certain things.
Isn't it funny how this one was such a looonnnggg read when just two books ago most of us finished way before schedule?
1. Let the Great World Spin is told through the eyes of eleven different characters. What is the effect of this chorus of voices? Why do you think the author chose to tell the story this way? If you had to choose a single character to narrate the whole book, who would it be, and why? What do you think might be lost, or gained, by narrowing the story to a single perspective?
i liked hearing all the different perspectives, and especially enjoyed seeing all the stories come together at the end. i thought the different tones and voices really added to my enjoyment of the book. ...eh, just going to ignore the last few questions, i don't think i want to pick just one!
2. As McCann explains in the author's note, the book's title comes from "Locksley Hall," an 1835 poem by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, which was itself inspired by a series of ancient Arabic poems. Why do you think McCann chose to use this title for such a modern American story? What does the title mean to you, and do you think it affects your relationship to the book as a reader? Would this be a different novel, do you think, if it had been called something else, like "Highwire"?
I think the title just shows that life goes on...everyone experiences grief, hopes, etc - and if you slow down to listen to the individual stories, they can be quite interesting
3. The narrative takes place almost exclusively in New York City, but could it have taken place in any other city in the world? How can this be seen as a specifically "New York" novel, and how might it not be? Are there ways in which the characters are emblematic of their time and place, or is there an "everyman" quality to them?
i don't really know much about NY, but I did really enjoy judge solomon's descriptions of it, and his description of the tightrope walker being the perfect NY statue
4. The novel opens with an extraordinary tightrope walk between the World Trade Center towers. This is a fictionalization of a famous stunt by Philippe Petit in August 1974?yet the tightrope walker in the novel remains anonymous, unrelated to any of the other characters. What do you think the effect is of weaving this historical fact into the fiction of the other characters' stories? What do you think McCann intends to achieve with this, and in what ways do you think he succeeds?
5. How important do you think this historic walk is in the novel itself? In what ways would the stories?and story?McCann is telling be different if the novel had been set on a different day, or in a different era?
i thought it would play a more central role in the story - as it was, it ties everyone together, but isn't really a focus of the novel, i don't think. the stories would be very different if set in a different era - the vietnam war, NY in the 70's - so central to the story. different day, eh, not sure.
6. Do you see ways in which the tightrope might function as a metaphor, or symbol, throughout the book?
according to the NYT article I linked above - "the metaphorical possibilities of the walker ? the paradox of this innocent, unsanctioned act of ?divine delight? being carried out between two buildings that would one day be so viciously and murderously destroyed ? are hard to ignore, particularly in a novel so concerned with the twin themes of love and loss." ...
7. In the chapter titled "This Is the House That Horse Built" we get an intimate glimpse into the life of a New York prostitute in the 1970s. She considers herself a failure. Do you agree with her? Or do you think she achieves grace despite the circumstances of her life?
oops, i included this last week
8. All but one of the chapters in Let the Great World Spin are set over the course of a couple of days in early August 1974. Why do you think McCann chose to jump thirty-two years, to 2006, for the final chapter? In what ways do these pages add to, complicate, or even change the story that came before? Why do you think he chose the character of Jaslyn to tell that final piece of the story?
dunno
but i really liked it! i ended up really liking Gloria's story
9. What do you think Jaslyn discovers at the end of the novel?
erm...curious to hear your thoughts?
10. What parallels do you see between the society of the 1970s, as McCann depicts it in the novel, and today? How do you believe these similarities and differences speak to the changes in America and the world over the past several decades? Would it be fair to say that America itself is one of the evolving characters in the novel, a separate figure whose story is also being told?
11. Adelita says: "The thing about love is that we come alive in bodies not our own." What does she mean by this?
maybe referring to corrigan - how he struggled so much with his faith and his love for adelita, yet was finally able to find happiness with her, even if it meant renouncing parts of his faith? ...?
i'm not sure that i agree that jazzlyn is one of the main characters <shrug>. i don't feel like i ever really knew her, even with tillie's and jaslyn's viewpoints. erm, i actually think it affected me less...12. It can be argued that Corrigan and Jazzlyn are the book's two main characters, yet they die in the opening chapters. Why do you think McCann chose to allow their lives to be destroyed so early in the book? Why did he choose not to tell any of the story through their points of view? In what ways do you think that decision makes these two people more?or less?central and powerful in the story as a whole? Could it be said that it is sometimes the stories not told that affect us the most?