The Girl Upstairs–Discussion Questions (Spoilers!)

Discussion Questions

(There are spoilers below, so don’t read these until you’ve read the book.)

 

 

 

  1. Did you always suspect the house was haunted? If not, when did you know it wasn’t and why?
  2. Since you are only in Gwen’s head, you only get to see through her own eyes, prejudices, and pain. Therefore, did you believe everything she believed about her husband? Later, after she pushes through the pain and sees the truth, did it change your own perspective about Steven?
  3. Have you ever seen things one way due to your own pain, grief, and misconceived ideas only to discover later you were wrong about a situation or person? 
  4. What particular scene unsettled you most? Why?
  5. Could you relate to Gwen in any way? If not, could you sympathize with her based on her past pain and hurt?
  6. Have you ever coped with trauma, grief, or pain in an unhealthy way? How did you realize it was unhealthy and did you find healthy ways to heal and cope?
  7. Did you see the allegory in the 3 chickadees and the crows? The contrast between them?
  8. Did you notice how the town went from picture-perfect to a town of masks–only it was their true identities? Did you think Halloween and decorating for the holiday contrasted that darkness and the lies of those covering up crimes?
  9. Gwen has to discover that she has had a lot of darkness in her life, but it doesn’t have to stay in darkness. She had to be rebuilt–like the dark house she lived in. She decides to stay in the house. Even though horrific things had happened there, good also happened there and now that it was rebuild and remodeled, she wanted to stay. Would you have stayed? Why or why not?
  10. Gwen, in a way, got her dream but it didn’t come by the way she had hoped? Have you ever experienced a dream dashed only to see it come to life but in a way you never expected? 
  11. Who would you cast as the characters in the book? 
  12. What did you think about Baby Tara? 
  13. Would you have done things differently than Gwen? Why or why not?
  14. How did you feel about the epilogue (the final ending) and would you like to see more stories about Gwen now that she’s discovered her new purpose through all the past trauma?