A Quarter After Tuesday
Release Summer 07
     
   

Reader’s Guide/Discussion Questions for A Quarter After Tuesday
 
  1. Religion reporter, Jonna Lightfoot MacLaughlin, has been looking for stories that reflect good news since she started her career at the Denver Dispatch. Why do you think she’s so determined to find good news? How does this affect her reporting when she takes the job at The New Orleans Banner?

  2. Since moving south to New Orleans, Jonna has encountered a variety of differences from her Colorado upbringing. What are a few of these cultural differences and how does she handle them? Have you ever experienced the effects of a similar relocation? What helped you adjust to your new home?

  3. Consider the cast of characters in Lightfoot’s new life: her editor Hattie, her colleague Rufus (RED), her neighbors PennyAnne and Ruthie, her brother Mark, Ms E and her new friends at the Harmony Interfaith Senior Manor. What role does each play in Jonna’s life? Do you know individuals who might be similar, and if so, how could you connect with them today?

  4. Jonna’s culinary tastes are happily enhanced in New Orleans. Though she remains faithful to her coffee and chocolate commitments, she also acquires a few new delights unique to the southern city. What are they and what do they say about her? (Take a minute to refill your coffee cup right now and pick up a pastry with powdered sugar to reinforce your understanding of her situation.)

  5. Jonna’s dating life takes what seems to be a miraculous turn since coming to New Orleans. How come? What is it she’s done to attract the attention of two prominent leaders, and what do you think she’s hoping for in a relationship? What advice would you give her?

  6. Though Jonna’s work as a religion reporter requires that she take seriously the belief systems of all the readers her newspaper serves, how does she remain firm in her own Christian convictions? What diverse religions and beliefs does she encounter—and confront—in New Orleans? How does she engage with each person and what lessons does she offer you? What examples of true religion do you see?

  7. The history of the Harmony Interfaith Senior Manor reflects a radical pursuit of racial and denominational unity as well as social concern for the elderly. How have they managed to stay together for so long? How does Jonna feel when she realizes their corporate life is threatened (and how did you feel)? How does the vision of their life together speak to you today?

  8. 8. Auntie Belle, Miss Neta, Marva Rae and the others at HIS Manor each offer friendship and encouragement to Jonna. How do they define good news? What does each character represent to Jonna, and what motivates her advocacy for them? Do they remind you of people in your own life?

  9. What surprised you most in A Quarter After Tuesday? Where you think the title came from? What themes and issues surfaced for you throughout Jonna’s journalistic adventure in the Crescent City? And how has the story affected your view of the role journalists play in a community?

  10. What do you think will happen to Jonna Lightfoot MacLaughlin when she goes to work for her old boss, Skip, in a city like New York? Will she find good news? Or a good man?