In The Three Musketeers, arguably one of the greatest swordplay books of all time, d’Artagnan’s father tells him, “Never fear quarrels, but seek hazardous adventures. I have taught you how to handle a sword; you have thews of iron, a wrist of steel; fight on all occasions; fight the more for duels being forbidden.”
To view the fights of d’Artagnan and other swordsmen in fiction, click here.
Luther Gaunt is a member of the Long Gone Daddies, a working man’s band that play dive bars. The Long Gone Daddies are on the their way to Memphis, but where the band wants to make it big, Luther mostly wants to retrace the steps of his musical father and grandfather and piece together his family’s history. Luther’s father disappeared years ago and Luther’s grandfather is definitely dead – shot for rambling around with another man’s wife, but what of his life before that bullet? Armed with Cassie, the guitar that has been passed down for generations, Luther is searching for songs, truth, and family in David Wesley Williams’ novel, Long Gone Daddies.
SPOILER WARNING: These book discussion questions are highly detailed and will ruin plot points, if you have not read the book.
Title: The Big Sleep
Author: Raymond Chandler
Page Count: 249
Genre: Mystery, Pulp Fiction
Tone: Witty, Gritty, Fast-paced
1. What did you think of Chandler’s constant barrage of setting details?
2. Do you think General Sternwood had given up on being a parent? What would you have done differently?
3. Vivian visits Marlowe’s office to try and figure out if he is looking for her husband. Why doesn’t she just go to her father?
4. Vivian tells Marlowe, “People don’t talk to me that way.” (p. 19) What does this tell us about Vivian? What does this tell us about Marlowe?
5. Marlow comes in contact with thugs, lowlifes, cops and the rich. Does he speak to everybody the same?
6. Marlowe seems almost unmovable. Almost. What are some examples of Marlowe being human?
-p. 61, Marlowe blushes after Vivian leaves
-p. 190, interaction with Eddie Mars’ wife
7. Do you count The Big Sleep as a classic of American literature? Why or why not?
8. What makes a character classic?
9. What are the charms of Marlowe?
10. Do you think Phillip Marlowe has an equal in crime fiction?
11. Did you see Marlowe as Humphrey Bogart?
12. Who could play Marlowe in this day and age?
13. What did you think of Carmen?
14. Is Carmen not very smart or does she have health issues that can account for her behavior?
15. Rusty Regan, the missing, bootlegging husband, always carried 15 grand on his person. What does that say about him?
16. Why do you think Chandler never lets us see Rusty Regan, alive or dead?
17. What does it say about Phillip Marlowe that he carries a gun and a bottle of rye in his glove compartment?
18. When you read the book, did you see it in black and white in your mind? Color?
19. Why would Vivian “loath masterful men?” (p. 20)
20. Did Carmen getting the drop on Marlowe surprise you? (p. 210)
21. Eddie Mars’ wife says she still loves her husband, even knowing what a criminal he is. (p. 196) Were you bothered by her stance? Why?
22. If you could go back to 1939, would you want Marlowe’s job? What job would you want?
23. What does it say about Marlowe that he is a private investigator instead of a police officer?
24. Did the slang ever bother you?
25. Is everybody (men and women) a smooth talker in The Big Sleep?
26. Any favorite quotes from the book?
27. On page 48, the doctor can’t easily tell Owen Taylor’s time of death. How would this bit of information help establish the novel’s era?
28. There ended up being a good number of characters and quite a few of them dead. Did you ever have trouble following along?
29. One of Chandler’s most famous quotes is, “When in doubt, have a man come through the door with a gun in his hand.” (The quote originates from “The Simple Art of Murder,” found as an introduction essay to his novel of the same name.) Did you see examples of that in The Big Sleep? Is this a good writing practice?
30. Think of characters and their status levels. Is there any social critique within The Big Sleep?
31. Do women have power in this story? If so, what kind?
32. How does Marlowe see women?
33. Does Marlowe have a code of honor?
34. Some of Raymond Chandler’s biggest literary influences were Charles Dickens, Ernest Hemingway and Henry James. Do you see any connections in his work to these authors?
-Ex: Dickens wrote convoluted plots, Hemingway wrote in short, to the point sentences, and James wrote in very dark tones
35. What influence do you think Chandler has had on crime novels?
Other Resources:
Raymond Chandler’s website
Extra discussion questions on Spark Notes
Wikipedia page on pulp fiction
Ian Fleming interviews Raymond Chandler
Raymond Chandler’s 1945 essay for The Atlantic about writing in Hollywood
Original 1939 New York Times book review of The Big Sleep
Extra books on Chandler: Raymond Chandler: A Biography and The Raymond Chandler Papers
The End of Your Life Book Club is the true story of Mary Anne and Will, a mother and son, finding the power of books as she is dying of cancer. For two years, they read an array of genres and deeply discuss topics such as gratitude, listening, and love.
Cathleen of Fiction/AV/Teen Services recommends One Amazing Thing by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni:
No one noticed the first rumble. Lost in thought while waiting in line for visas, a diverse group of nine individuals had no idea their fates were entwined. When the earthquake hits, they find themselves trapped in the basement of the foreign consulate with no escape, little food, dwindling oxygen, and water beginning to seep in through the floor. It isn’t long before tensions lead them to turn on each other, until one suggests they distract themselves by each sharing an important story — one amazing thing — from his or her own life. The tales are heartbreaking, inspiring, and vulnerable, and they illustrate the transcendent power of story as well as the quiet miracles that have the power to transform our lives.
A successful ad rep was walking down the street in Manhattan. A young boy begged her for money for food. He hadn’t eaten in two days. The woman kept walking…until something made her stop, turn around and ask the boy to go to McDonald’s with her. For the next four years, the two met every Monday so the young boy could have a meal. After that, their bond kept growing. In An Invisible Thread, Laura Schroff tells the story of how a homeless panhandler became her son.
OH, NO! Aliens are here to invade our bodies and take over Earth. Wait…what about…OH, NO! Humans have accidentally destroyed the Earth and now have to find another oxygen-rich world. Planetary colonization is a major theme within sci-fi, and there are plenty of ways in which it can go down.
Click here to see fiction, and a few movies, that feature planetary colonization.
For four friends, Freedom University is more about finding love than academic rigor. Lena’s plan was to follow in the collegiate footsteps of her parents, famous alums of Freedom, and then get married to her NBA-bound boyfriend…but sexual curiosities disrupt that blueprint. Denise is on the woman’s basketball team and doesn’t have time to find a girlfriend and settle down. Cooley is a Don Juan and romances around the campus with whoever is willing. Carmen is getting used to her new self. She lost a lot of weight and, with that loss, self-confidence and relationship issues are gained. To find out who finds true love and their true selves, check out Choices by Skyy.
Augustus Waters and Hazel Grace are two of the most powerful characters in YA fiction today. They meet in a child Cancer Support Group where they begin a relationship that is deeply moving and often hilariously irreverent. The Fault in Our Stars is a love story that celebrates being alive.
“Today I will shoot a policeman. In the leg. And every day I will shoot a policeman, until you charge the murderer.” It isn’t enough that Cape Town homicide detective Benny Griessel is tasked with the cold-case stabbing of Hanneke Sloet; he also has to contend with the ticking clock of a sniper who insists the police are engaged in an active cover-up. South African sensation Deon Meyer writes tense crime thrillers against a backdrop of racial conflict and complex personality. With no apparent motive, no viable suspects, and no new leads, how will Benny solve a 40-day-old mystery while at the same time protecting his colleagues? British narrator Simon Vance steers listeners through Seven Days of dire circumstances to create a riveting audiobook experience.
