The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend

The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald – To be Discussed on Wed May 2, 2018, at Geneseo Public Library

Broken Wheel, Iowa, has never seen anyone like Sara, who traveled all the way from Sweden just to meet her book-loving pen pal, Amy. When she arrives, however, she finds Amy's funeral guests just leaving. The residents of Broken Wheel are happy to look after their bewildered visitor―there's not much else to do in a dying small town that's almost beyond repair.

You certainly wouldn't open a bookstore. And definitely not with the tourist in charge. You'd need a vacant storefront (Main Street is full of them), books (Amy's house is full of them), and...customers.

The bookstore might be a little quirky. Then again, so is Sara. But Broken Wheel's own story might be more eccentric and surprising than she thought.

Discussion Questions

1. Did you enjoy this book? Why or why not?

2. Which characters in the book did you like best?

3. Did any of the characters remind you of yourself or someone you know? How?

4. What aspects of the author’s story could you most relate to?

5. Share a favorite quote from the book. Why did this quote stand out?

6. If you got the chance to ask the author of this book one question, what would it be?

7. What do you think of the book’s title? How does it relate to the book’s contents? What other title might you choose?

8. What do you think the author’s purpose was in writing this book? What ideas was she trying to get across?

9. Did the book’s pace seem too fast/too slow/just right?

10. Compare this book to others your group has read. Is it similar to any of them? Did you like it more or less than other books you've read?

11. What did you learn from, take away from, or get out of this book?

12. Would you recommend this book to a friend?