1.
What was Johnnie's main character flaw?
2.
Why do you think Johnnie didn't run to the altar when she knew she should? What do you think held her back?
3.
Was Marguerite really looking out for Johnnie's best interests as she claimed?
4.
Was Marguerite right about black men?
5.
Why do you think the author didn't give much of a description of Earl Shamus and Richard Goode?
6.
Was Marguerite right in her assessment of the ongoing problems between black women and white women? If wrong, why don't these women like each other? If right, what, if anything can be done to change the attitudes of both races?
7.
How did you feel when the girls at church laughed at Johnnie?
8.
Did Earl love Johnnie? Explain your answer.
9.
When Johnnie didn't understand “big words,” she bought a dictionary. What do you do? Do you pretend like you understand, or do you ask the person the meaning of the words?
10.
Was Johnnie a lady, a whore, or both? Explain your answer.
11.
“How could you do it with the white man?” Billy Logan yelled. Was this a legitimate question? Should the races be segregated again? Why or why not?
12.
Was Coach Mitchell right when he refused to endorse a letter to Grambling University for Lucas Matthews?
13.
Did you like Lucas? Why or why not?
14.
If Marguerite had not come home early, would something have happened between Johnnie and Lucas?
15.
In 1952, prior to Affirmative Action, Baroque Parish's black businesses were thriving. What happened between then and now? Why aren't there more black businesses like they had back then? Is it because Blacks are being held back? Or is there another possibility? If so, discuss some of the possibilities.
16.
In Fletcher's Funeral Home, there is a plaque with a quote from Frederick Douglass. What is the quote? There are two onyx figurines on his desk. Who are these men, and why did the author select those two historical figures for that scene?
17.
Napoleon Bentley: Would you date him? Why or why not?
18.
At the Savoy, Marguerite told Johnnie she could still be an evangelist. Why didn't Johnnie stop selling herself and go back to the Lord?
19.
Why didn't Lucas and Napoleon listen to Bubbles' advice on love and sex?
20.
Johnnie is only sixteen when the novel ends. What do you think will happen with her life?