Book Club Discussion Questions and Guide for Meant to Be by Emily Giffin

1. Meant to Be is told from two points of view, Cate's and Joe's. How did this technique affect your reading experience and connection to the characters?
2. Among the novel's multiple themes—grief and loss, love and attraction, secrecy and connection—is there one that resonates most with you? Explain.
3. Discuss the title, "Meant to Be." How do you think it relates to the overall story? How does it apply to each of the characters?
4. In what ways does the past influence the present in Meant to Be? How do the characters try to repress or escape the pain of their histories? What does the novel tell us about the relationship between past and present? How does this affect the characters' interpersonal relationships and help them heal?
5. Cate's unexpected romance with Joe quickly develops into a passionate love story, changing her life forever. Along the way, Cate learns how to open up again. Discuss a time when you had to be vulnerable to develop a new relationship.
6. How does this book convey the ways in which human beings are shaped and altered by their encounters and relationships with one another? You might choose to discuss, for example, how children are influenced by their parents or how certain characters are motivated to differentiate themselves from those of previous generations.
7. Both Cate and Joe have deep wounds from the past, which continue to fester. Cate realizes that there won't be any resolution until they are healed. Discuss conflicts in your own life that originate/d from past wounds. How can / did you work past them?
8. Emily Giffin's writing has a strong focus on causality, or how certain events and choices have life-altering effects on individuals. What examples of cause and effect can you pull from the novel, and how do you think things would have turned out differently had these instances not occurred?
9. What did you think about the ending—were you satisfied or disappointed with it? How do you picture the Cate and Joe's lives after the story closes?
10. Did Meant to Be prompt you to question your understandings and definitions of love and marriage? In what ways does it convey that love, or the love one might have for a partner or family member, is not static, but fluid or malleable, taking different forms at different moments in time?

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