A Thread So Thin (34 page)

“You don’t.” She laughed. “Not for sure. But don’t worry. It’s not like there’s only one right thread. If you find your thread is taking you somewhere you don’t want to go, you can always grab hold of another. You’ll have many threads, many choices in your life. Some will be better than others. But all of them, every single one, has at least the potential for good. You’ll see,” she said and reached her hand to run her finger tenderly along my cheek, a touch I remembered from other dreams and other days.

“The main thing is not to be afraid.”

“I’m not. Not anymore.”

“Good for you. You’re going to be fine. I always knew you would be. Just keep reaching out and grabbing hold. The thread may look thin, but it’s stronger than you think. You’ll see. You’re stronger than you think too.”

She smiled again and held out her hand. I looked up at her, handed her the empty glass, and saw the name printed on her name tag: Susan.

She grabbed hold of the cart handle. “It’s time for you to wake up now, Liza. But I’ll see you again,” she said as she walked down the aisle, pushing the cart ahead of her.

Garrett stirred next to me, yawned.

I yawned, too, opening my eyes and blinking a few times before turning first to the left, toward the empty aisle of the darkened plane, filled with sleeping travelers, then down to my lap, where the unstitched patches of my quilt block still sat, and then to the right.

Looking out the tiny oval window, I saw the velvet-black night studded with pinprick stars in a sky that began in the mind of God and ended at the edge of dawn, to a thin silver thread of morning arcing across the horizon, stretching as far as I could see and farther still, a shining path that could lead me anywhere.

Anywhere I choose.

A READING GROUP GUIDE

A THREAD SO THIN

Marie Bostwick

ABOUT THIS GUIDE

The following questions are intended to
enhance your group’s reading of
A THREAD SO THIN.

1. One of the recurring themes in
   A Thread So Thin
   is that women have many and varying choices today: to marry, not to marry, to have children, not to have children, to pursue a lucrative field or one that is fulfilling but does not provide financial security. Liza said, “The way I see it, the older you get, the more chance there is that the choices you make now will screw up the whole rest of your life.” Why do you think Liza had this outlook on life? Do you agree with her? Like Liza, have you faced a crossroads in your life when you had a difficult decision to make about your future? Did the decision turn out right for you? If not, did it or did it not impact the rest of your life? Looking back, would you make the same decision?
   
2. Both Garrett and Liza had lost their fathers due to betrayal, yet one of them lived life with a positive outlook, and the other seemed to continue to suffer from the betrayal. What do you think led to this difference?
   
3. When Liza’s mother died, her mom’s attorney, Franklin, gave her some of the support her mother would have provided had she lived. In your life, has there been an adult other than your parents who helped you through tough times and helped you celebrate your successes? Who is that person, and what did he or she do to help you?
   
4. After Liza was forced to move in with her aunt Abigail, she set out to make Abigail’s life hell. Do you recall a time in your life when, in rebellion, you gave your parent or guardian similar grief? Why do you think you did this? Later, how did you feel about your attitude? Did you change your attitude, and why?
   
5. Liza loves New York City—the ambience, the art, the food—especially the people. How would you characterize the people where you live? Are they generally friendly or standoffish? Why do you think the local populace has this kind of attitude?
   
6. Garrett is an optimistic person. What is your outlook on life? Are you, like Garrett, confident that, one way or another, everything will work out and that the best is yet to come? Or do you find that you generally expect the worst to happen? Why do you think you have your attitude? Has your outlook been influenced by turns of events in your life, or do you think this is just a part of your inherited tendencies? Do you think a person can change his or her outlook on life? If so, how?
   
7. Abigail and Liza mended the rift between them, aided by their shared involvement in quilting. If you have mended a broken relationship in your life, share how the mending began and what brought you back together.
   
8. When Liza was trying to make up her mind what to do about Garrett’s proposal, she surveyed her friends and acquaintances about their attitudes toward marriage. Do you think marriage is as relevant to women today as it was fifty, even twenty-five, years ago?
   
9. Why do you think it took Evelyn so long to say yes to Charlie’s proposal? Was that wisdom on her part, or fear, or some of both? Have you, or has someone you know, faced similar difficulty in responding to a proposal? How does time and age change what women want or expect from life, marriage, and career?
   
10. One of Charlie’s favorite sayings about a person who possessed a certain skill was, “You don’t just lick it up off the rocks,” meaning that a lot of the talents we think of as belonging to us alone are actually inherited. What talent or special skill do you have that you think you inherited from a member or members of your family?
    
11. After Liza did not immediately say yes to Garrett’s unanticipated marriage proposal, and she witnessed his abrupt change in demeanor, she decided that the idea of being responsible for someone’s happiness isn’t any more comfortable than the idea of being responsible for someone’s misery. Have you ever felt you were forced to “own” someone’s happiness or misery? If so, did you convey that this was not a weight that should be put on your shoulders, and how did you accomplish this? How did the person react to your assertion?
    
12. Evelyn was thrilled that every woman in the new quilting class taught by her and her mother left with at least one new friend. She allowed that new friends are the kinds of treasures that don’t show up on a balance sheet but do add up to the best sort of payday. Especially considering what Evelyn has been through in her marriage and her health, what does this attitude say about Evelyn? How do you think her attitude has contributed to or detracted from her happiness and success?
    
13. Why do you think Evelyn reacted negatively when she first learned about Garrett and Liza’s engagement? Can you remember a time when you wished you could have taken back a response to someone’s news?
    
14. What impact did Liza’s father’s betrayal have on her concept of family? How did this affect her ability to commit to Garrett?
    
15. Liza was profoundly touched by the beautiful quilt her friends and relatives made for her as their wedding gift. Have you ever received a gift that touched you similarly? If so, tell the group about it and the people who gave it to you.
    

For more information about
A Thread So Thin
or Marie Bostwick, visit www.mariebostwick.com or follow her on Twitter, @marie bostwick.

Dear Reading Friend,

It has been such a joy for me to serve as your guide on this, our third visit, to New Bern. Three books in to the Cobbled Court series of novels (and already working on book four, which I believe you’ll see in the late spring or early summer of 2011), I can honestly say that I find this little village and these characters as compelling as ever. I hope you feel the same.

When I sat down to begin working on
A Single Thread,
the first Cobbled Court novel, I had not considered it to be the first in a series. But by the time I finished writing it, I very much wanted to return to New Bern, so I asked readers to write and let me know if they felt as I did.

You did write, by the thousands, and I am so grateful.

Your enthusiasm for these characters and their stories, and your openness as you shared how these books have made you laugh, cry, think, and even make important changes and decisions in your own lives, convinced me that it was important to return to New Bern. I have done so with pleasure.

Every e-mail and letter I receive from readers is a huge encouragement. I do read every note, and every note receives a response—not always as quickly as I’d like, and it does take me much longer to respond to letters than e-mails, but I do my best to keep up. (If you don’t hear back from me, please double-check to make sure you’ve included a correct return mailing address or e-mail.)

If you’d like to write to me, you can do so at the address given on page 340, or you can drop by my website, www.mariebostwick.com, and send me a note via the contact form. While you’re there, you can also read excerpts from all six of my other novels and check out the Recipe of the Month, my Latest Crush, my blog, or my upcoming appearance schedule.

Also, if you register as one of my Reading Friends (click on the Become a Reading Friend box on the left of the home page to begin), you’ll have access to special content; be registered in my monthly Readers’ Contest; receive personal invitations to my appearances in your area; and have the opportunity to connect with other readers in the online forum, as well as download free goodies such as the Broken Hearts Mending quilt pattern from
A Single Thread
and printable recipe cards for the dishes that were featured in
Snow Angels
.

AND, as a special thanks to my registered Reading Friends who are also quilters, I’m delighted to offer a new quilt pattern from
A Thread So Thin
! Famed quilting teacher and designer Deb Tucker, of Studio 180 Design, has created a beautiful table-runner pattern based on Liza’s Star-Crossed Love quilt that I think you’ll love. Reading Friends can download the table-runner pattern free for their personal use, but
please remember:
This gift is available only via computer and only to registered Reading Friends.

Thank you again for visiting New Bern. I hope you enjoyed this trip as much as I did. Until we meet again…

Blessings,

Marie Bostwick

PO Box 488

Thomaston, CT 06787

www.mariebostwick.com