Where There Is Life
Discussion Guide
**SPOILER ALERT** – Please don’t read this before reading the book, as it contains spoilers!
1. Was it a shock to learn Autumn’s husband died right at the beginning of the story? Would you have liked to have the wedding described in more detail or would this have made the accident more traumatic?
2. When Autumn came home from London after the accident, what do you think of her behaviour? Did you feel it was normal or typical for her to reject all her friends calls, refuse to eat, or meet with people? Or do you think she handled the situation worse than most due to her relatively trauma free life up to that point?
3. Was there anything Autumn’s Mom, Dad, brother or friends could have done to make her grieving period easier for her? Autumn clearly was frustrated with what she felt as her mother’s intrusion on her grieving process. Did this frustration seem justified?
4. Autumn decided to act ‘as if Matt had never existed’. Do you know anyone who responded to death in that way? Do you think seeing a psychiatrist or psychologist could have helped her at this stage?
5. Autumn meets Jakob and Emily very early in her ‘runaway trip’. Do you think this hindered or helped her (albeit odd) grieving process?
6. Dominic hits on Autumn very early on in her visit to the family vineyard. Do you think he noticed that Jakob seemed to already have an interest in her and so thought he needed to act fast to turn her interest to him? What do you think of Dominic and his expectations that Autumn would sleep with him at the hotel?
7. The title of the book comes from some life lessons passed on (in a paraphrased quote) from Farfar. What role do you feel Farfar played in the book and in the story of Autumn’s journey? How would the story have been different without him?
8. Autumn eventually learns to deal with her grief and embrace the life she now has. What role do you feel caring for her mother played in this? Were you able to forgive her for not immediately making the decision to head home to help her mother?
If you have any questions about the discussion guide or would like a chance at having Charlene visit your bookclub through a webcall, email contact[at]charlenecarr.com
