This month’s FYA Book Club selection is Ask the Passengers by A.S. King. Check out the discussion questions below! (Slight spoilers ahead.)
P.S. If you’ve already read the book, feel free to add any other discussion questions of your own in the comments!
Icebreaker
Astrid has a super glamourous job of deveining shrimp. What was the worst high school job you ever had? (If you didn’t work, how about a bad volunteer or extracurricular experience you had?)
Questions
1. Astrid and her friends are all hiding some part of their true selves. Did you ever go through a poseur phase? What were you like?
2. How did you feel about the way Astrid handled her identity and sexuality confusion?
3. What about Dee? Was their relationship believable to you?
4. Astrid’s family is def. dysfunctional. Did you find yourself more sympathetic for Astrid and her struggle to be understood, or for her parents and their struggle to understand their daughter? How much does your own family role(s) — as a child, parent, or both — influence your perspective on this?
5. Astrid’s being pulled in every which way by the people in her life. Who do you think is the most controlling or pressuring Astrid the most?
6. The rumour mill at Astrid’s school rivals even the collective power of the Plastics. Did this feel like an authentic depiction of high school dynamics? How does it compare to your own high school experience?
7. This book contains a lot of philosophical ideas, with Socrates’ being especially prominent. Did this enhance your reading experience? Why or why not? And the philosophy class debate day in full dress-up regalia: awesome or awesomest!?
8. When Astrid poses a question to the passengers, the resulting narrative is related to what she asks, sometimes even manifesting as a passenger’s stray thought. Pure imagination, mere coincidence, or do you think something more is at play?
9. If you could pick any group of people gathered together on an airplane to send your love, who would it be?
