Readers Discussion Guide for UnderStory by Lisa J. Lickel
Back Cover:
When nobody loves you, you have nothing to lose.
Lily Masters is not getting involved with any fake job
scheme covering a sex trafficking operation supposedly cooked up by her
stepbrother, prison guard Art Townsend. Hoping to get help at a friend’s place
deep in the woods of northern Wisconsin before a blizzard, Lily loses her way.
At first, she doesn’t realize how fortunate she is to be found by Cam Taylor, a
poetry-spouting former lit professor. Cam has his own reasons to hide while
writing a biography of his Civil Rights activist grandparents and accidentally
stirs up a cold case murder involving a potential Supreme Court judge. When
trouble follows, either of them is the likely target.
Beneath every story is layer upon layer of trust and lies.
Who can they believe when things go from surreal to devastating?
- ISBN-10: 1539978591
- ISBN-13: 978-1539978596
Amazon Kindle http://amzn.to/2ew7YMM
Keywords: racism, prejudice, Wisconsin, suspense, sex
trafficking, prison life, dogs, blizzard, Civil Rights
1.
The underlying theme of UnderStory is prejudice. We all judge
people and situations around us either consciously or not, and judge ourselves
by the way we think others see us. Lily and Cam are no different. How did they
see themselves? In what ways does prejudice affect your life?
2.
Lily and Cam come from families which shaped and
scarred them. Compare Lily’s Midwestern upbringing and blended family with Cam’s
biracial parentage and military brat upbringing. Which aspects of their lives
influenced them the most? Which made them stronger?
3.
What made Cam run away from his life as a
literature professor in a small-town college? Should he have stayed in his job?
4.
How did Lily adapt to her condition? What did
she sacrifice to keep her secret? Should she have kept it secret?
5.
Art Townsend, Lily’s stepbrother, is a
small-minded man operating out of selfishness. Why would Lily allow him to have
any kind of control in her life? By the same token, her father, Roman, was
toppled by the weight of his self-righteousness. At what point did Lily realize
that family blood didn’t equal automatic family loyalty?
6.
Lily’s nephew Kenny is given his own voice in UnderStory. How would the book be
different if we didn’t hear his side?
7.
Cam shares his love of literature, both
Shakespeare and an American early nineteenth century poet, with Lily. How does
he reconcile the two sides of his nature, that of soldier and of scholar? How
does the poem, “The First Snowfall,” fit into the narrative?
8.
When did Lily know she could trust Cam with her
mission to rescue her nephew and expose the criminal activity in town? How
could a community like Barter Valley allow an outside influence to establish a
foothold? What other examples can you cite where outside influences have tried
or succeeded in molding local opinion, or even laws and ordinances?
9.
Cam is working on a biography of his
grandparents who were active during the 1960s Civil Rights movement in
Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He unwittingly uncovers a secret about what his
grandparents witnessed, and a potential answer to a wrong done to his family.
What was the result of Cam’s research?
10.
What did you think of Barter Valley? Would you
like to visit or live in a community like that? What were the positive and
negative aspects of the village and its residents? How does it compare to your
community?
11.
Sven and Ole serve as comic relief in the
otherwise dark story. Whose side are they on? How did they both help and get in
the way of Cam and Lily? What did Cam learn about them and himself at the end
of the story?
12.
Special Agent Forbes invites Cam to join the
Department of Justice. What kind of agent might Cam have been? Should he join?
13.
Georgia Weams is a formidable force. What role
did Cam’s sister play in his life? What did she need, in general, and in this
story timeline? Do you think she found what she was looking for?
14.
Kenny Masters is a product of his upbringing. Do
you have hope for his future? For Cam and Lily? Did the people in the story
get, or not get, what they expected?
15.
The secretive international sex trade operation
presumably left Barter Valley. Was that the end of their influence? How can we,
individually and as a society, learn to recognize and evaluate beneficial and
damaging motives behind seemingly positive activity, programs, and donations to
our organizations or communities?
