This month’s FYA Book Club selection is Carry On by Rainbow Rowell. 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
In Simon’s world, spells derive their power from oft-repeated phrases, like “Some like it hot!” (to heat something up) and “See what I mean!” (to write things in the air). With that in mind, using a song lyric or common phrase, come up with a spell of your own and a context for using it.
Questions
1. This novel began as a Harry Potter-inspired book-within-a-book in Fangirl. Consequently, there’s a lot of similarities between Harry and Simon’s stories, but there’s also some differences. Do you feel that Rainbow Rowell created a world of her own in this book, or did it still feel like a too-obvious imitation of J.K. Rowling’s universe? Was there anything you liked better about Simon’s world than Harry’s?
2. Watford is chock-full of fantastic characters. Who was your favorite and why?
3. Simon + Baz = hottest gay relationship in YA ever?
4. The burden of being the Chosen One weighs heavily on Simon, just as it did on Harry. The latter is often accused of being kiiiind of an asshole–did you feel the same way about Simon?
5. How did you feel about Agatha? And did your opinion of her change over the course of the story?
6. Did you solve the mystery of the Insidious Humdrum before it was revealed? And did you find the Mage to be more or less of a sympathetic character than Voldemort?
7. The Mage died without ever revealing that he was Simon’s father. Moreover, it seems that Simon will never know that the ghost of his mother visited him. Do you consider Simon’s ignorance a tragedy or a blessing?
