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DISCUSSION QUESTIONS Cocaine Blues |
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1. Did you like the book?
2. What do you think of the title of the book?
3. What time period is this book set in? The date is never explicitly
stated, so how did you know? Did you like reading about this time
period?
4. The book is set Australia. Does the exotic (to us) locale help or
hurt the book? Do you think the average American knows enough about
Australian culture and history to get all of the lingo and cultural
references?
5. How old do you think Phryne is? Is her age significant to the story?
6. The author portrays flappers as feminist figures with agency and
guts, while many other sources depict them as silly and giggly girls.
What do you think about Greenwoods interpretation? Would you consider
Phryne to be a flapper?
7. There are some very distinctive social class differences between the
characters in the book. Do you think these classes are especially
noticeable in the book due to the time period or the English/Australian
culture? Does social class affect the mystery/story?
8. Phryne draws her gun and puts the barrel on the back of Burt’s neck
as a method of haggling taxi fare. This scene is appears to be a
perfectly normal thing from Bert’s perspective. Why do you think that
is? What does this tell you about each character?
9. In the book, Phryne mentions her gun a number of times. What does the
gun mean to her, as a symbol, and to you, as a reader?
10. Phryne’s other possessions are described in great detail. Do we
learn about her character and opinions through these descriptions or are
they mostly color?
11. What are Phryne’s strengths?
12. Phryne can do a number of things that set her apart from other
characters. Do these traits strike you as realistic for a wealthy person
with a lot of free time? Are they suitable in a heroine in this sort of
book?
13. Does Phryne develop as a character during the novel? If she does,
how?
14. What are Phryne’s weaknesses? From the author’s perspective, what
function do they serve?
15. There are a number of supporting characters in this novel. Are they
there to provide color to the novel or are they essential to solving the
mystery? Are they essential for the things they do or the things they
know?
16. How did the side story of Butcher George and Alice Greenham play
into the larger Lydia mystery? In your opinion, did it help or hurt the
story?
17. What use does Dr. Elizabeth MacMillian have in the book/to the
mystery? Did you like her character?
18. Did you know who was poisoning Lydia before it was revealed?
19. Did you know who the Cocaine distributer was before it was revealed?
* Some questions from MentorPL
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