Two Summers: information for bookclubs

Here are some ideas for discussion. If you have comments on this list, or any further suggestions, please e-mail me

o   My favourite review comment has been: ‘Not just a changed country but a changed narrator’. Do you agree – and what changes do you think emerge?

o   Have there been any other changes? (For instance electronic communication).

o   How does having a 50-year-old diary add to the story?

o   As we now know, much has happened in America since the author returned from his travels! Can we see the roots of the events of 2020 in 2019 – or even 1969!? And does that help us in our understanding of what is happening in America now?

o   Did the book make you laugh? Did it bring a tear to your eye?

o   Was the author brave or foolish to have gone back on the buses? Would you have gone with him; or would it have been your worst nightmare?

o   In what ways do you think travelling by bus gives a different experience? What did the book gain from this mode of travel?

o   Do you think the author made a good choice in his itinerary. Are there other places you would have gone - and if so what would you have left out?

o   Do you think the author still retains his affection for America?

o   Has everyone got a life story in them!?