DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
for Mary A. Agria’s IN TRANSIT
1. Discuss how the lives of all the
characters in the novel, in one way or another, are ‘in transit’.
How does “rootedness” or involvement in ‘community’ change these
life journeys from fearful to empowering experiences? Discuss how
Lib, Paul, Arvo, Annie, Sonja and Earl grow as they reach out to one
another.
2. How do the various characters in
the story define “home”? Discuss how those definitions change over
time for them.
3. How do ‘traditional’ gender roles
contribute to Lib’s struggle to face the loss of her spouse and
begin again? Discuss how she struggles with such stereotypes as the
novel progresses.
4. In what ways are generational
relationships crucial to the story? Discuss how Lib’s family
dynamics impact the plot and her own personal growth.
5. Lib’s daughter, Danielle, faces
demons of her own when her father dies. Discuss how Dani’s childhood
contributes to how she relates to her mother in time of crisis and
as Lib tries to rebuild her life.
6. Discuss Paul Lauden’s struggles to
deal with his grief, his past life choices and cope with the
aftermath of his own wife’s death. What factors limit his
flexibility as he tries to begin again?
7. Contrast and compare the response
of Paul’s son to losing a parent and the way Lib and her daughter
are facing similar issues. What factors make it difficult to cope
with how their surviving parent’s lives are changing?
8. How do the marriages of Annie and
John, Earl and Sonja, the elderly campers in the Minnie Winnie, even
Arvo and his lost love, play a role in Paul and Lib’s growth as the
novel progresses? How do attitudes toward “work” vs. “retirement”
shape those relationships?
9. Some 500,000 households are
currently full-time RVers. Why can that full-time RV lifestyle be so
appealing? Discuss what couples and singles can do to make that life
choice more successful long-term.
10. The Lauden’s and the Aventura’s
in many ways can be considered typical of families struggling with
loss and change. Discuss how treating life as a “journey” not a
destination can make such turning points survivable. Discuss how
imagery and the novel’s setting contribute to conveying the
spiritual side of that world view.
Download a PDF version of these questions
for printing.
READER AND CRITICAL PRAISE FOR MS. AGRIA’S NOVELS: "Fresh language
and images"..."Richly drawn, wonderfully engaging characters,
haunted by ultimate questions of mortality and spirituality"
TO MEET THE AUTHOR: arrange for a phone "Author Chat" for a book
group; schedule a signing or reading; follow Ms. Agria’s monthly
online "Reflections"; or learn more about her other novels/books, by
contacting her website at www.maryagria.com
