Book Summary and Reviews of Skye Falling by Mia McKenzie

Book Summary

A woman who's used to going solo discovers that there's one relationship she can't run away from in this "hilarious, electric" (The New York Times) novel, a probing examination of the complexities of family, queerness, race, and community.

When she was twenty-six and broke, Skye didn't think twice before selling her eggs and happily pocketing the cash. Now approaching forty, Skye still moves through life entirely—and unrepentantly—on her own terms, living out of a suitcase and avoiding all manner of serious relationships. Maybe her junior high classmates weren't wrong when they voted her "Most Likely to Be Single" instead of "Most Ride-or-Die Homie," but at least she's always been free to do as she pleases.

Then a twelve-year-old girl tracks Skye down during one of her brief visits to her hometown of Philadelphia and informs Skye that she's "her egg." Skye's life is thrown into sharp relief and she decides that it might be time to actually try to have a meaningful relationship with another human being. Spoiler alert: It's not easy.

Things get even more complicated when Skye realizes that the woman she tried and failed to pick up the other day is the girl's aunt, and now it's awkward. All the while, her brother is trying to get in touch, her mother is being bewilderingly kind, and the West Philly pool halls and hoagie shops of her youth have been replaced by hipster cafés.

With its endearingly prickly narrator and a cast of characters willing to both challenge her and catch her when she falls, this novel is a clever, moving portrait of a woman and the relationships she thought she could live without.

Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!

1. What is Skye's responsibility to Vicky when they first meet? What initially motivates Skye to pursue a relationship? How does this change over time?
2. Skye seems to have a love-hate relationship with Philadelphia. What complicates her feelings?
3. How does gentrification affect the characters in the novel?
4. "Chosen families," or groups of friends who fill the family role for each other, are important for many queer people—and for anyone who has felt unsupported (or worse) by their biological family. Who is in Skye's chosen family at the beginning of the novel? What about at the end? Who do you consider yours?
5. In a conversation with Viva about who would take care of her if she got sick, Skye says, "People ...