America America Reading Guide & Discussion Questions

Book Club Discussion Questions

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For supplemental discussion material see our Beyond the Book article, The 1972 Democratic Nomination and our BookBrowse Review of America America.

Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!

1. This novel makes many assertions about the American political landscape in the early 1970s. What are some of those assertions? In what ways have American politics changed since then? And how does Henry Bonwiller compare to today's politicians, in terms of his political demeanor and beliefs as well as in his sense of both personal and public morality? 
2. Structurally, the novel is braided from several strands – the political story, the personal story, the story about economic class and social station, and the story of the town itself. Which of these stories, in your opinion, provides the novel's bulwark? How does each contribute to the novel's themes? 
3. Corey has two father figures in the novel, his own father and Liam Metarey. Despite the differences in their social and economic stations, the men are similar in several ways. How? How do the two of them influence the man that Corey becomes? 

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