Blue Jeans and Coffee Beans (31 page)

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Questions With Coffee

A Reader’s Guide

1. In the novel, Neil is known to say that the sea air and salt water “cure what ails you.” How does the setting of Stony Point cure the characters? Do you find yourself soothed by water?
   
2. When Maris watches old home movies of her mother, she realizes that she captures the same emotions witnessed on the screen in her denim fashion sketches: “ … the clothes covering human shapes that care, that move with feeling, that know love.” Is Maris looking to “design” something more than fashion sketches?
   
3. During her vacation at Stony Point, Lauren reminisces about her time with Neil and begins to doubt her life with Kyle. With the tension in their marriage growing palpable, Kyle finally asks, “Then why didn’t you cut me loose back then?” Why didn’t Lauren break it off? And why did Kyle stay with her?
   
4. In Foley’s, the old beach hangout, the music of a vintage jukebox evokes nostalgic memories. Why do songs have such power to transport us in time? What song moves you?
   
5. Throughout the story, Eva steals mementoes from homes she lists as a real estate agent. Do you think she will ever return, or dispose of, those items? Or will she be driven to hold on to them still?
   
6. Often, we wish we could go back and re-do certain moments. Jason is haunted by a few of these: grabbing the keys Neil tossed him, and not clarifying details on the police report documenting the motorcycle accident. Would it have helped him to cope if he’d corrected the error in that accident report all those years ago?
   
7. Is Neil a hero?
   
8. Did Maris’ father, Louis, make the right decision? Will Maris and Eva ever find Elsa?
   
9. What does the future hold for these beach friends? Where will the “driftline” take them?
   
10. Maris’ fall campaign, Blue Jeans and Coffee Beans, captures the reality she lives at Stony Point Beach: “The sketched figures … sit on a penciled boardwalk, toss driftwood down a long watercolored beach, skim stones over the pastelled Sound, catch Frisbees mid-air, ink strokes freezing the moment, and walk along the high tide line, sipping coffee side-by-side with old friends.” Describe your favorite pair of blue jeans. What memories are tied to your denim?
    

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About The Author

J
oanne DeMaio is an award-winning author of contemporary fiction. Her bestselling novel
Whole Latte Life
won First Place in the 2012 Discovery Awards and was selected by Kirkus Reviews as a Critics’ Pick. It has been featured in USA Today, The Huffington Post and other outlets. In addition, Joanne’s music essays have appeared in literary journals, celebrating her passion for song.
Blue Jeans and Coffee Beans
is her second novel.

Joanne lives with her family in Connecticut and is currently at work on her next book. She enjoys connecting with readers at …

Facebook:
www.facebook.com/JoanneDeMaioAuthor

Author Website:
www.joannedemaio.com