Discussion Topics for Your Book Club

• Jo Ann initially had no thoughts of the possibility of dating Gary on the evening they met because of their age difference. How important is age when considering who you would date? Or marry?
  
  
• Jo Ann surprisingly (especially to herself) broke most of her dating rules after her relationship with Gary began. Would you ever consider taking a vacation with a man you had dated for only six weeks?
  
  
• Jo Ann learned to live each day to the fullest and didn’t need anyone else to “complete” her or make her happy. She couldn’t imagine a future with a man she had only dated for four months, knowing that he is leaving the country to work for at least three years? Would this have been a deal breaker for you?
  
  
• Jo Ann had difficulty choosing to evacuate New Orleans before Hurricane Katrina. Having her same time line and set of circumstances for deciding, what would you do?
  
  
• Were you ever unavailable to a family member in need because of your own immediate needs? If so, how did it make you feel? If you were Jo Ann, would you have gone to San Francisco to be with her sick Mom, or to Boston to be with her sister, Carol Lynn?
  
  
• What do you think Jo Ann would have done about returning to her home in Kenner if Gary had not come back to the US to accompany her? What would you have done?
  
  
• What was your reaction to Jo Ann’s decision to marry Gary?
  
  
• Are there details about Jo Ann and Gary’s lives not written in the book that you would like to know? Knowing this is a true story, do you have any curiosity about them today?