Gone Girl - Illustrator 4

Discussion Director 3

1. Do you think Amy or Nick wanted to have a baby? Why?
2. Amy is far less trustworthy than originally thought. How has your opinion of Amy changed?
3. How do you think their relationship relates to real relationships?
4. What do you think about Amy sanity?
5. Do you think Nick can clear his name? Did you think this originally?

Gone Girl - Investigator 1

• The author wanted the story to be relatable in terms of a failing long-term relationship.
• In relation to this, the relationships "power plays" and "dynamics" between husband and wife represent the conflicts people face in long-term relationships.
•  The book also makes a point about class, with Amy being of "high-class" descent and Nick from "lower-class." This is meant to further show a conflict about differences.
•  The author makes an effort to make her characters "unlikable in a dark-story setting."
•  The book is structured from the point of views of two unreliable narrators (Nick and Amy) to evoke suspense and thinking.

Gone Girl Week 1 Plan

Wednesday (Pages 1-30) [Night]
Friday (Pages 31-65) [Night]
Saturday (Pages 65-102) [Day]

Gone Girl Reading Schedule

4/28/15 (Pages 1-102)
5/5/15 (Pages 103-218)
5/12/15 (Pages 219-318)
5/19/15 (Pages 319-419) [Finished]

Discussion Director

1. Why do you think Alice couldn't say she loved Harvey?

2. What do you think about Alice's Mom's reaction to her outburst?

3. After Deborah's talk, how do you view her now?

4. Alice is beginning to change as a person. How do you think she will?

5. Why do you think the story ended the way it did?

Vocabulary Enricher 2

sharply (142 Par. 3) - Acute/sensitive. [use of the word]

coloring (149 Par. 1) - Applying a substance to a visual. [use of word]

depressing (155 Par. 1) - A cause of dejection. [relation to story]

compensate (165 Par. 3) - To recompense/repay a loss. [possible other uses for the word]

oracle (178 Last Par.) - A medium of advice. [discuss why the word was used]

Investigator 1

Investigation

• Side Effects May Vary was her first book.
• The book reflects on how she felt as a teenager.
• She aimed to write the book through the voice of a teenager.
• In accordance with the last bullet point, she aimed to make the story feel as if in a realistic teenage setting, and she felt high school was the most relevant setting for her goal.
• The time of the story is supposed to inspire mental growth.
• The author knows that Alice is unlivable, but aimed for her to be written the way she to show strength and weakness.
• The book was meant to be told from "then" and "now" from the start.
• She believes that the story is comparable to the Fault in Our Stars.

Side Effects May Vary

Reading Schedule

March 17) Pages 1 - 65

March 24) Pages 66 - 135

March 31) Pages 136 - 195

April 14) Pages 196 - 259

April 17) Pages 260 - 330

Discussion Idea

In order to make discussions fun, I suggest that we will all need to make one prediction per person in each discussion. In subsequent discussions, we could brush up on if our previous predictions were correct.

Grading

1) Everybody stays on top of reading.

2) Everybody talks at least twice.

3) Everybody makes at least one prediction per discussion.

Predictions for Side Effects May Vary

Something That I Know

1) Alice is diagnosed with leukemia and wants to right her wrongs.

2) Harvey is chosen to help Alice, and he has feelings for her.

3) Alice expects to die soon because of her condition.

What I Think Will Happen With That

1) Alice will succeed in her initial plan, but some event will occur causing her hardship that she can't do anything about.

2) Harvey will help her, and she will realize feelings for him in return, but something bad will happen to him.

3) Alice will be given a second chance on life somehow, but at that point she might not want it.

Passage Reflection

The Book Thief - Last Page

"I am haunted by humans."

This is the very last line of "The Book Thief, and these words were spoken by death himself. The fact that Death referred to his duty as "work", resonates with me. Finally, the fact that he speaks to the Book Thief at the end of the book, and says these words, really gives me something to ponder.

The Book Thief - Pictures

Another Failed Artist (Page 223)

"He was well educated enough to get by, but he was certainly no writer, and no artist."

Max Vs. The Champion of the World (Page 251)

"He was twenty-four, but he could still fantasize... Around him, it all materialized."

The Wolf Searches for the Rabbit (Page 343)

"Does he know? Liesel thought. Can he smell we're holding a Jew?"

Changing Color (Found Word Poem)

              First the colors. Then the people.

                    That is how I see things.

                 First up is something white, 

                You know, the blinding kind.

                   Next is a signature black,

            to show the poles of my versatility.

             The last thing I see is always red.

It's hard not to like a person who not only notices colors,

                             but speaks them.

     (From "The Book Thief" by Markus Zusak)