I Shall Be Near To You Reading Guide & Discussion Questions

Book Club Discussion Questions

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For supplemental discussion material see our Beyond the Book article, Rose O'Neale Greenhow and our BookBrowse Review of I Shall Be Near To You.

Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!

1. Rosetta asks (both implicitly and explicitly) many of the other characters in the novel to keep her secret, which they do with varying degrees of willingness. Discuss the role of secrets in the novel and the impact Rosetta's secret has on her relationships—with Jeremiah, the boys, Will, Jennie, her family. Why is Rosetta so upset when her mother suggests that if Rosetta will just come home, they will never speak of what she has done?
2. Was Rosetta right to keep the specifics of Eli's attack a secret from Jeremiah? Was she right to keep her pregnancy a secret?
3. Discuss Rosetta's reasons for keeping secrets for others. For instance, what makes Rosetta willing to keep Will's secret? Why doesn't Rosetta confront or turn in Mrs. Greenhow when she realizes Mrs. Greenhow may still be spying and passing information?

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