Book Club Discussion Questions and Guide for The Memory Library by Kate Storey

Book Club Discussion Questions

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Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!

1. What was your first impression of Ella, and did that change by the end of the book?
2. Do you think Sally should have told Ella the truth about her father after his death, or even before?
3. The question of when we learn to see our parents as individuals, rather than through the lens of being their child, is addressed in the book. Did that resonate with you?
4. Do you have a favourite supporting character?
5. How do you feel about the relationship between Sally and Andrew at the end?
6. Do you prefer books set in real or fictional places? Have you ever been to Greenwich? If you have, do you think it was depicted well?
7. Do you use your local library and if so, why do you think libraries are important?
8. Did the theme of community in the book make you think about your own community and your place in it?
9. Why do you think readers gravitate towards books about books?
10. Have you read many of the books mentioned?
11. Have you ever read a novel that changed your view of the world?
12. Is there a book with a special meaning that you would add to Sally and Ella's library? What would you hope they might learn from it?
13. If you were to start your own memory library, which would be the first book you choose, and why?
14. Have you considered starting a memory library for someone else since reading the book?

Unless otherwise stated, this discussion guide is reprinted with the permission of HarperCollins Publishers. Any page references refer to a USA edition of the book, usually the trade paperback version, and may vary in other editions.