The Signal Flame Reading Guide & Discussion Questions

Book Club Discussion Questions

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For supplemental discussion material see our Beyond the Book article, The MIA in Vietnam and our BookBrowse Review of The Signal Flame.

Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!

1. When young Bo asks Jozef, "Are we going to war?" (page 7), why does Jozef startle? Why might Bo think war has come to Dardan?
2. In his eulogy for Jozef, Father Rovnávaha points out that Jozef's surname, Vinich, means "vine" in Slovak (page 20). How was Jozef a vine in his family and in the community?
3. Why does Ann's death push Bo to give up on college (page 50)? Why does Jozef allow Bo to stay without any argument?

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