This Must Be the Place Reading Guide & Discussion Questions

Book Club Discussion Questions

Print PDF

For supplemental discussion material see our Beyond the Book article, Ray Harryhausen and our BookBrowse Review of This Must Be the Place.

Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!

1. Very early on, Max Morris says to Arthur that, "sometimes you let the people you love believe what they want to believe." Do you think that’s true? How does that statement play in to the rest of the novel?
   


2. What role does food play in the novel? Mona bakes cakes for a living, and also feeds her tenants each night – it’s pointed out several times that both Mona’s meals and cakes are especially delicious. Do you think her skill with food is meant to imply something about her personality as well? Is she a nurturing person in general?
   


3. The novel opens with a young Amy on a bus headed towards Hollywood. What were your initial perceptions of teenage Amy? How did your opinion of her change over the course of the novel?
   

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