 How is setting used in the story? What element of the setting is most significant in the story?

How would you describe the main characters? How do they develop in the story? Who changes besides Lia? We learn about characters in the following ways:  How they act   What they say How others act around them   What others say to and about them What the author tells us, if narrator is omniscient

   How does this help or hurt what we know about the story as we are reading?

Is Laurie Halse Anderson successful in creating rounded characters? Do we know what characters beside Lia care about and are interested in? Do we know what kind of personality they have?

What kinds of relationships are established? How do we know so much about these relationships?

  Conflict: what is the main conflict? Is Lia’s inner conflict the only one in the story? Are the other conflicts a result of or in addition to her main conflict?

Remember the diagram of plot? What do you consider to be the climax/turning point of the story? This is the point that is the most emotionally intense and impacts the protagonist the most.

  Unifying idea or subject of a story; often a universal idea or truth, sometimes a life lesson.

We discussed many themes before we read the book, all dealing with self esteem, self image, and self perception. What do you think the major themes are?

The writing style of Laurie Halse Anderson is what makes this book for me! How does she use the following conventions?

  Point of view Dialogue    Symbolism Figurative Language Text variations

       Sea glass Knitting (yarn and needles) Elijah’s tattoo Cassie’s rose garden Cold, winter, snow The spider and its web Seaweed

      Is Lia a sympathetic character? What all does Lia lose when Cassie dies? What did their friendship mean to Lia?

What is Elijah’s role in the story? Why did LHA include him? How is he significant to the story?

Obviously, Lia’s struggle with anorexia is related to early experiences with body image and feelings of self worth. The book gives just a little insight into what it was in her past that may have pushed toward such extreme behaviors. What from her past do you connect with her anorexia?

What message is Lia sending to all of her parents by starving herself? Do they get the message?

Is Lia a real girl again?