The Memory Box (27 page)

Readers Guide and Book Club questions for
The Memory Box by Eva Lesko Natiello

In order to provide discussion topics for reading groups and book clubs, important plot points are revealed. You may wish to explore these questions only after finishing
The Memory Box
.

1. Throughout much of
   The Memory Box
   , we witness Caroline’s panic as she discovers her inability to remember important events from her past. Do you empathize with her? Have you ever experienced something similar? In order to aid your memory, have you relied on outside sources? Did you ever discover that a memory from your childhood was something you fabricated from pieces of things?
   
2. The author relies
   on several “memory boxes” in the story. Discuss how some of the memory box devices are subjective and others are objective.
   
3. We find out
   a great deal about Caroline and her childhood from listening to the audio tape of Elaine’s session with Dr. Sullivan. Discuss what we learn about young Caroline and her relationship with JD.
   
4. Caroline had a
   heightened interest in twins. Discuss Caroline’s insistence that she and JD were twins. Why do you think that’s so important to Caroline and do you believe it’s true?
   
5. What are your
   thoughts about Andy? Do you think Caroline has underestimated him? What do you think about Caroline’s relationship with Lilly and Tessa?
   
6. Facades play an
   important role in
   The Memory Box
   . Discuss the different facades at play and what they present and what they conceal.
   
7. If it is
   a universal human quality to be concerned with what others think of us, discuss how each of the characters’ concern manifests in different ways.
   
8. Compare the relationship
   Caroline had with Timothy to the one she has with Andy.
   
9. How does the
   setting affect the story?
   
10. Do you agree
    or disagree with Dr. Sullivan’s decision to uphold the confidentiality agreement he has as Caroline’s psychologist?
    
11. What are your
    thoughts about Caroline? Do you think it’s possible for a person to be both good and evil?
    
12. Why do you
    think JD never told Caroline who Lilly’s father was? Or about what happened at the party with Timothy?
    
13. How does the
    book explore the concepts of perception and reality?
    
14. Some people might
    consider Caroline to be the ultimate control freak. Discuss the theme of control in the story.
    
15. The term “Google
    Effect” is described as the habit of forgetting information that can be found easily by using Google or other search engines. Have you noticed a decline in your memory since the emergence of internet search engines and your use of them?
    
16. Were you satisfied
    with the book’s ending? What do you think will happen next?
    

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Eva Lesko Natiello is an award winning author who lives in the New Jersey suburbs with her husband and two children.
The Memory Box
is her debut novel and a recipient of Houston Writers Guild 2014 Manuscript award. She is currently writing her next novel.