Reader’s Guide

1. What was Carrie’s desire in wanting to live a full life? Did she achieve her hopes and dreams? What propelled her forward and what got in her way?
2. Carrie quotes Von Goethe: “Knowing is not enough, we must apply. Willing is not enough, we must do.” Do you agree? Why or why not?
3. How would you describe the relationship between Carrie and Robert? Was it a “good marriage”? What was good about it? What was troubling, if anything?
4. Did Carrie do the right thing in how she responded to the Bunting twins?
5. Could Carrie have put down deeper roots in places besides Omaha, Caldwell, and Spokane while living in the Single Room Occupancy hotels? How might she have done that?
6. How did Carrie’s spiritual journey inform her physical journey and vice versa?
7. What steps did Carrie take to fulfill her hopes to be a parent, to have a home of her own, to be her own person? What else might she have done?
8. Have you had to move often and try to make new friends? What helps? What hasn’t worked?
9. Why didn’t Carrie want to write letters and pass them around to a group of women to share experiences about books? Have you ever done something like that to maintain friendships across the miles?
10. What of Carrie’s life speaks to you today?