Challenge 597

Hometown Blues

1. In Mike McNichols’ “I Shot Sonny Battalion,” what kind of work does Franky seem to have taken on in later life? At what point in the story does it cease to be a surprise that Franky is carrying a pistol and silencer?

2. In Tom Wylie’s “A to Z at Brookview Elementary”:

   1. Why might the narrator deliberately hand Harvey the letters out of order? Why might he do so hurriedly?
   2. How might the narrator feel about the incident when recalling it in later life? How do you, as the reader, feel about it?

3. In James Shaffer’s “The Sound of Breaking Glass”:

   1. Is George really a voyeur? If so, is he a willing or involuntary one?
   2. Is Peggy an exhibitionist? Is she deliberately setting a trap for George?
   3. George suspects that Julia knows what Peggy is doing. Is Julia a silent accomplice of Peggy’s?
   4. For what does Michelle blame George? In what way might her reaction to his “confession” be seen as ironic or even hypocritical?

4. In Sarah Ann Watts’ Winter Ship, “Kota Samur”:

   1. Daan says Kyran has slept for a hundred years. Kyran assumes that Daan is joking, but how might Daan be right figuratively?

   2. At the end of chapter 19, “Changeling,” Razvan says that Kyran’s very existence is inexplicable. How is Razvan’s puzzlement borne out by Kyran’s discoveries in chapter 21?

   3. Kyran muses, “I don’t want to return to the Empire, but I know that I must go back, retrace the patterns of the past and fulfill the promise I made to my father. I should bring his children home.”

      When did Kyran make that promise? What kind of sequel does it imply? What will he have to do? Who has taken responsibility for the twin boys in Kyran’s place?

   
   

   Responses welcome!

   Copyright © November 17, 2014 by Bewildering Stories
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