BOOK GROUP QUESTIONS

If you have other questions about the story, characters or writing process, just use the email address on the contact page and I’ll be in touch.

1. ‘We’re all here for a better life,’ says Dina. What do you think she, specifically, wants from London? What about Bebba? And Peter?

2. At the start of her journey, Dina doesn’t fit in to London life. At what point do you think she makes the transition?

3. Dina says: ‘She smiled at me and, for a second, I caught a flicker of the girl I once knew, the one who threw her leopard skin coat on the floor at jazz clubs and taught me to drink martinis.’ Why do you think Dina regrets falling out with Bebba – and what has she lost?

4. What’s Bebba’s view of men? Is it founded in her experience or assumptions?

5. Dina spends the early days of their friendship comparing herself with Bebba – are female friendships always based on comparisons and rivalry? Think about your own friendships – is it possible to have friendships without this friction?

6. How do the three main characters – Dina, Bebba and Peter – get others to do what they want? Who is the most honest in the way they operate or are they all dishonest in their own way?

7. Dina assumes her friendship with Bebba is stronger than any that can happen between a man and a woman. Is she right?

8. What role does Colleen play in Dina’s life?

9. What does Dina see in Madame Sylvie and why do the two women have a special connection?

10. According to Peter, ‘life isn’t fair and you have to grab what you can as soon as you can’. What has made him like this? Do you think Peter will ever see a ‘sure thing’ come to light?

11. What role do you think the theme of identity plays in this story, in relation to Dina, Bebba and Peter. What does it mean for all of them?

12. In the 1950s, the British government invited many commonwealth citizens to live in the UK and take up jobs. How have things changed for immigrants today do you think?

More questions? Get in touch using the contact page.