Discussion Questions: A Long Way Down, by Nick Hornby

[Sammee]

Discussion Questions: A Long Way Down, by Nick Hornby

***SPOILER WARNING*** These book club discussion questions reveal important details about A Long Way Down, by Nick Hornby. Finish the book before reading on.


Hornby says:

'I suppose the idea for A Long Way Down began a long time ago when I read that there were nights of the year when suicides spike. Where I live in north London there are also accounts of suicides that take place at Archway Bridge. If you've got a well-known suicide spot, and a night of the year when people choose to die, people must see each other. That was an idea that was sufficiently interesting to me not to let go of.'


Questions for discussion

How would you describe each of the four main characters? Which of them do you most identify with? Why? What was it about the others which made it more difficult to identify with them?

What has motivated Martin in the past? What motivates him to consider suicide? What makes him keep going over the next three months?

How does Martin change during the course of the story? What brings about these changes? How important a factor is people being honest with him?

Nick Hornby says:

'I suppose of all the plights in the book, I identify with Maureen most because I have a child with a disability. She's not me, and her child is not my child, but once you're in that world of disability and carers, which I am, the stories you hear are astonishingly powerful. I think that anyone would empathise with her story, but because of a route that one part of my life has taken, I am more exposed to those thoughts than many.'

What made you feel that Hornby has a particular sympathy for Maureen as you read A Long Way Down? How did Maureen's situation impact you?

What journey of faith is Maureen on during this story? What affects her attitude to the church at different points in the story? How real would you say her faith is?

Why do you think Jess is the volatile person she is? To what extent is she responsible for her behaviour, and to what extent is she a victim of circumstances?

What is the unique contribution which Jess makes to the group? Do you think they would have changed as they did without her? Why/why not? What do the others contribute?

Why does JJ first lie about his illness and then finally tell the truth?

What really matters to JJ apart from music? How do his perspectives on himself and others change?

'I don't know why, but it was kind of liberating, saying what you really wanted, even if you couldn't have it. When I'd invented that Cosmic Tony guy for Maureen, I'd put limits on his superpowers because I thought we might see what kind of practical assistance Maureen needed. And as it turned out, she needed a vacation and we could help, so Cosmic Tony turned out to be a guy worth knowing. But if there's no superpower limit, then you get to find out all kinds of other s***, like, I don't know, the thing that's wrong with you in the first place.' (JJ, p. 198)

What do you think each of the characters most need? Did your thoughts on this change as you read the book?

JJ continues: 'We all spend so much time not saying what we want, because we know we can't have it. And because it sounds ungracious, or ungrateful, or disloyal, or childish, or banal. Or because we're so desperate to pretend that things are OK, really, that confessing to ourselves they're not looks like a bad move. Go on, say what you want. . . . Whatever it is, say it to yourself. The truth will set you free. Either that or it'll get you a punch in the nose. Surviving in whatever life you're living means lying, and lying corrodes the soul, so take a break from the lies for just one minute.' (p. 198, 199)

What do you really want, deep down? Do you agree with JJ that survival means lying, and lying corrodes the soul? Why/why not? When Jesus said, 'You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free' (John 8:32, NLT), he put it in the context of ongoing obedience to him. Later (John 14:6) he made clear that he is the truth. What do these perspectives add to what JJ said? How do you feel about Jesus' statement that true freedom comes through knowing him?

'So, have I learned not to sleep with sixteen-year-olds, or attractive young women? No. And yet just about everyone I've evr interviewed has told me that by doing something or other – recovering from cancer, climbing a mountain, playing the part of a serial killer in a movie – they have learned something about themselves. And I always nod and smile thoughtfully, when I really want to pin them down. "What did you learn from the cancer, actually? That you don't like being sick? That you don't want to die? That wigs make your scalp itch? Come on, be specific." I suspect it's something they tell themselves in order to turn the experience into something that might appear valuable, rather than a complete and utter waste of time.' (Martin, p. 208)

Do you agree with Martin? Why/why not? What do they each learn about themselves, even if they don't yet realise it?

What do you think are the best ways to help someone who feels suicidal? How do you get over the problem faced by the four characters in A Long Way Down that they felt no one else could understand their situation?

Nick Hornby writes:

'I'd always presumed there were great numbers of people who thought about suicide as a door that was open to them. It never occurred to me that people didn't think about it. Having talked to a couple of friends, explaining that it was something I was writing about, I was quite startled that some of them had never thought of suicide, and I suspect those people are in a minority. Most people at their darkest moments have had that speculation; I know I have, though the characters in my novel have taken it a stage further than I ever have, by moving from thought into action.' (www.nickhornby.co.uk)

What is your perspective on suicide? What, if anything, has made you consider it as an option? What helped you to go on with life?