Hi bookworms!
If you’ve been following along with Close Reads Cafe, the official book club of The Write Teacher(s), you’d know that our book pick for June was LEARNING NOT TO DROWN by Anna Shinoda. Now that June is coming to a close, we’d love to discuss the book with you!
My review:
Clare Tovin is just a regular teenager who wants a regular life, but her family is teeming with dysfunction and the whole town knows it. A good story about addiction, faith, and learning to let go in the hardest of circumstances. Shinoda writes with a clear voice and a sincere grasp on how it feels to deal with such heartbreaking circumstances. Her characters are vivid and you’ll keep turning the pages to assure yourself that their outcomes are happy ones.
What did you think of LEARNING NOT TO DROWN? Feel free to leave all your answers and comments on this post or in the discussion thread in our Goodreads group.
Here are some questions to get you started:
- What did you expect from this book when you first read the title?
- The characters in this novel all go through some grueling events. Which character did you connect with the most? Who do you think had the most visible transformation?
- Throughout the story, Clare is faced with tough choices. Do you think her final decisions were the correct ones? What would you have done if you were in her place?
- Did you feel any sympathy for Luke? Did you have hope for him?
- What did you think of the book’s ending? Would you have changed anything and written it differently?
Be sure to follow @TheWriteTeach + @CloseReadsCafe to keep up with the latest bookish news! And keep your eyes peeled for the announcement of our July book pick!
Live, Love, Learn,