Prepping for Spectacular Things book club? We’ve got you covered with these 10 discussion questions developed by our friends at Reading Group Choices. Sign up for the Reading Group Choices newsletter for more discussion question inspo. Enjoy book club!
1. The author notes in the acknowledgements that the poem “Dead Stars” inspired the title of the book, and three lines from the poem serve as the epigraph. After finishing the book, how do you interpret the epigraph? If you read the full poem, what connections do you notice between its themes and the story?
2. The story uses a dual timeline structure and shifts between Mia and Cricket’s perspectives. How did this timeline structure impact your feelings about the events unfolding in the present? In what ways did hearing from both characters shape your understanding of the choices they were making?
3. The writing employs frequent foreshadowing. How did this influence your reading experience? Were there moments when you paused, sensing that a detail might become important later? How did that anticipation affect your emotional response?
4. Soccer plays a central role in the novel, and acts both literally and symbolically. While Liz, Mia, and Cricket are very different, they are all drawn to the game’s combination of structure and unpredictability. How does this attract each of them to the sport in a unique way? How does it influence the way each character pursues the sport?
5. Liz seems to believe that history repeats itself across generations. What do you think about this idea? Do you agree with the belief that it only takes one brave person to break the cycle? What could that look like for this story?
6. Mia and Cricket are raised with the ideal of the self-made hero. Why do you think Liz prescribed to that ideal, and do you think her opinion ever changed? How do Mia and Cricket’s experiences, especially their post-surgery support system, challenge and reshape that idea?
7. Mia’s illness, like many events in the novel, places her in a position where she is no longer in control. As someone who has always cared for others, how does she come to accept this loss of control? How does her healing – both physically and emotionally – depend on her ability to rely on others, especially Cricket, and ask for and accept help? Why do you think asking for help can be so difficult, even as adults?
8. Each character’s adult identity is shaped by childhood trauma, parental influence, and early choices. At what point do you feel Mia and Cricket come to terms with their past, and with the risks and sacrifices they made? Even as they reach a sense of resolution by the end, do you think they carry lingering “what if” thoughts?
9. The novel carries a strong sense of grief – grief over loss, illness, sacrifice, and paths not taken. Did you relate to the feeling of grieving a decision, even when it felt like the right or necessary choice? How did the novel help you reflect on your own moments of sacrifice?
10. Spectacular Things can be read as a love letter – to sisters, to mothers, to daughters. What message about these relationships resonated most with you? What would you want to share with your own circle of sisters, mothers, or daughters? Why would you recommend this story to your community of supporters?
