Jess from Jess and Jacy and I compiled a list of questions for you to answer for the first section of Sugar Queen. (okay, Jess is way better at coming up with questions than I am! AND much more qualified!)
- What are your initial thoughts of the book so far?
- Discuss and compare Josey's relationship with her mother and her father. Why do you think Josey decided to stay and take care of her mother? Do you think it was because of the fits she threw or do you think that there are other reasons?
- Discuss Josey's relationship with food. Why doe she hide this candy in her closet?
- Why do you think Josey's mom doesn't want Josey to feel pretty? For example, taking the red sweater off when it looks pretty on her.
- Why do you suppose Josey was such a difficult child? What caused her to be that way?
Hope you guys are having fun reading Sugar Queen! For me it was somewhat of a slow, kind of strange "I don't know what to think" start and now I'm glued. It usually works that way for me though!
We will see you Monday for the link up! Remember, you do not have to be a blogger to participate. You are more than welcome to post your thoughts/answers in a comment below the link-up. We can't wait to see what you have to say!
3 comments:
1. At first I thought, "This is going to be a long read" because the idea of a stranger hiding in someone's closet sounded a bit too fantastic for my taste. With that being said, I was soon enthralled by the book and found myself unable to put it down.
2. It is obvious that Josey idolizes her father (who I'm sure has tragic flaws) and has a caustic relationship with her mother. I believe that she stays with her mother because she feels guilty for her behavior. But I also think she stays because her mother epitomizes the traditional southern matriarch and, being the only child, it is expected of Josey to fulfill the role of caretaker.
3. Food provides Josey comfort. It is the only thing that she feels she has control over. In my opinion she eats because this is a way to secretly undermine her mother and her expectations.
4. Josey's mother is an egomaniac. She will always consider herself a desired Southern belle. She doesn't want Josey to look attractive because it may take the focus off of her.
5. I think Josey's behavior as a child is a perfect example of the belief that negative attention often gains more of a reaction than positive attention. Her outbursts warranted a reaction from her mother, but it also caused her mother to send her on drives with her father. Josey relished these drives. Ultimately the fits were a way of getting to spend time with her father.
My recommendation: Sarah's Key.
1. I felt an immediate connection with the book. I think it is probably because I have had some “food” issues in my past. I empathize with Josey’s relationship with food. To be honest, I have finished the book already. It was hard for me to stop reading it, so I am going to be very careful as I answer these questions each week so that I don’t give anything away for those of you who haven’t yet finished it.
2. Josey looked up to her father. He was her hero. Her relationship with her mother is so complex. I think Josey was kept in such a sheltered life growing up, that she was afraid to leave. She didn’t know any different, and she still needs her mother’s approval. She obviously can’t get that emotionally, so the only way to get anything resembling approval is to drive her to her appts and take care of her. Live her life just as her mother tells her to.
3. I believe that Josey eats to have some control in her small life. Her food stash is the one thing she has in her life that is her own. Food gives her comfort; it gives her an escape from her mother and her smothering nature and high expectations. Eating the junk food is a way to rebel against her mother.
4. I think Josey’s mother is scared that if Josey gets too confident in herself or independent, then she will leave her. I think that her mother felt trapped in her marriage and life to this powerful man and wants to keep Josey just as trapped. If Josey would break out, then her mother would be envious of that. Leaving was something she never was able to do.
5. I am not sure why Josey was such a difficult child. If her mother acted as critical and uncaring as she does now, then I wonder if Josey was playing off of that. Children sense things so well, and if her mother wasn’t giving any time or affection, it could have been a way to get her mother’s attention—even negative attention.
No ideas at this time for February’s book, but I ‘ll keep my eyes open.
I just browsed my Nook library, and I have been wanting to read The Postmistress by Sarah Blake for a long time. That is my February recommendation.
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