Up from the Blue Reading Guide & Discussion Questions

Book Club Discussion Questions

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For supplemental discussion material see our Beyond the Book article, Desegregation Bussing and our BookBrowse Review of Up from the Blue.

Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!

Introduction
When Tillie Harris goes into labor with her first child, nothing is right. Her husband is away on business, the boxes in her new home aren't unpacked, and the telephone isn't even connected yet. Forced to reach out to her estranged father for help, Tillie must face the painful memories she's been running from since she was a little girl—the memories of her own mother and the year that changed everything.

Tillie's childhood home was a manic and messy world with her mother, Mara, at its center. Some days brought dancing, dress-up, and laughter, while other left Mother weeping, drained, and unable to get out of bed. When Tillie's father takes a top job at the Pentagon and forces the family to move, and as Mara's worsening depression can no longer be ignored, Tillie's life spirals out of control.

Arriving at her new home in Washington, D.C., Tillie discovers the unthinkable—her mother has vanished. As her father tries to impose a new, orderly pattern to family life—and refuses to discuss what has happened—Tillie's fertile imagination attempts to fill in the missing gaps by inventing elaborate narratives and questioning her father's culpability. But when the veil is lifted and the mystery is revealed, Tillie discovers that the truth behind her mother's disappearance is far more complicated than she could have imagined.

Questions for Discussion

1. Up from the Blue features a frame story (a story within a story). How do the chapters about grown Tillie enrich the story of 8-year-old Tillie? How would the novel be different if the author had only written about young Tillie?
   


2. Eight-year-old Tillie is introduced as a biter who liked to leave a mark. What was your initial impression of her? What do you think she craved?
   


3. Describe the difference between how Phil and Tillie experienced the same events. Which character was more sympathetic to you? And does it surprise you that the same events could impact siblings so differently?
   

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