The Bullet Swallower Reading Guide & Discussion Questions

Book Club Discussion Questions

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For supplemental discussion material see our Beyond the Book article, A History of the Texas Rangers and our BookBrowse Review of The Bullet Swallower.

Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!

1. One of the central questions posed in the novel is: Can we be better than our forebears? Do you think we can? What would this look like?
2. In her Author's Note, James says, "Everything in this book is true except for the stuff I made up." What do you think mixing fact and fiction added to the story?

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