Book Club Discussion Questions

1. What qualities of Kirk attract AJ to him? What qualities of AJ attract Kirk to her? Is theirs a relationship that can last? Why or why not?

2. What would you think if you met Smash? Would your first impression of Smash be favorable or unfavorable? Why? Were you surprised by what Smash did? Do you know anyone like Smash?

3. “Go along to get along” is the motto of some. What makes AJ different? What factors in her background impel her to resist intimidation and bullying at work and in her encounter with thugs trying to take her life?

4. Who do you think is working harder — AJ or Kirk — to make their relationship work? What and why do you think so?

5. What do you think of Grandma Lily’s response to her people’s suffering in the Trail of Tears? Do you think it is appropriate that Andrew Jackson — a supporter of slavery, an opponent of women’s right to vote, and a brutal exploiter of Native Americans — is honored on America’s $20 bill? Why or why not?

6. Do you have “rules” for life like the ones AJ inherited and embraced? Did someone give them to you or did you create them yourself?

7. How did the relationship between AJ and Kirk change when Deirdre tried to seduce Kirk? How does Deirdre differ from AJ? What factors influenced Kirk’s response to Deirdre’s moves?

8. Compare Bubba with Smash. How are they the same? Why? How are they different? Why?

9. Are you sensitive to preserving precious plants like the ones carried by the Cherokees from Florida on the Trail of Tears? Do you think we are even today destroying plants with healing powers? If so, what can we do about it? What can you do about it?

10. Describe the mindsets of your favorite characters in Kiss The Sky and how they differ from each other. Do you know people like them? What makes them think and treat other people the way they do?

11. If you met the parents of AJ, Kirk, Bubba, Smash, Massetti, Mengele, and The Gardener, what would you expect them to be like? What was their influence in the paths their offspring followed?

12. In what ways do you see AJ's response to the death of her father as positive and in what ways to do you see her response as negative? How does her relationship with her father affect her personal growth and relationships? What does she need to do to move forward emotionally? What do you think will happen if she doesn't? Are there people in her life you think can help her? How?

13. Sports play an integral role in many lives. How have sports -- both as a participant and as a fan -- affected your life, both positively and negatively?

14. Many Native Americans were forced to move from their homelands, like the ancestors of Lily and Jimmy in the Trail of Tears. And many people endured horrific experiences during the Holocaust in World War II, like the family of Bernie Kerman. Were any of your ancestors forced to move or endure great hardships in life? How did it affect them and their descendants?