Dick Francis Reading Group discussion

I am part of a book club with several friends. It was my turn to pick the book for January's discussion and I chose The Edge.
I wanted to introduce my friends to one of my most favorite authors, and one of my favorite books of his.
However, I will also be directing the discussion of the book at the meeting.
Any ideas on discussion questions I should include?
Thank you

Sounds like fun, Melissa! I don't have time right now, but I will post some questions soon.

What kind of questions are you looking for? I've never been in a book club so I'm not sure what to suggest. Questions about travel in Canada, or favourite train trips?

Okay, Melissa. I came up with five questions:

* Have you ever been on a mystery train? (Just FYI: In "A Personal Glimpse of Dick Francis" at the end of Bolt, they say that as part of his research for The Edge, Dick Francis and his wife took the Dick Francis Mystery Train across Canada.)

* Which part of this book appealed to you the most, the mystery or the trip on the train across Canada?

* How does this mystery compare to other mysteries you have read?

* The titles of Dick Francis mysteries usually have several meanings that relate to the mystery, the setting, or something in the story such as the main character's profession. What significance, if any, do you find in the title "The Edge?"

* Now that you've read one Dick Francis mystery, don't you think you would like to read them all?? :)

Hope that helps! They also might give you ideas for additional questions. I've never discussed a DF mystery in a group setting like that with people who haven't read other DF mysteries! So my fall-back questions like "How does this compare to other DF mysteries" or "Where does this fall in your list of favorite DF books" wouldn't work.

I can also send you a character list (that used to be posted on our group website, but isn't there currently), if you think it would be helpful. And if you want to read through meeting logs of our group discussions of The Edge from several years back (when we were on AOL), I could send those as well. Message me your email address if you think they would be helpful.

Hm, just realized I didn't include any horse-related questions! You can't discuss a Dick Francis book without at least SOME horse discussion! You could ask questions about the horse racing aspects of the story, which might work into some good discussion if some of the people in your group have been to races, like to ride horses, know horse owners in real life, etc.

One of my favorite quotes from The Edge is on the topic of horse racing. I'm going to cover it with a spoiler tag since it is one of the last paragraphs in the book:

(view spoiler)["Mercer turned toward me, speechless, brimming to overflowing with inexpressible emotion, wanting to laugh, wanting to cry, like all owners at the fulfillment of a dreamed-of success. The sheen in his eyes was the same the world over: the love of the flying thoroughbred, the perfection of winning a great race." (hide spoiler)]

And make sure you mention this fun little reference that always makes me chuckle. When one of the actors first meets the Youngs he says, "So you are Mr. and Mrs. Young. Any relation to Brigham? No? Never mind." :)

I really like The Edge, but it's been quite some time since I've read it, so this is based on somewhat hazy recollections.

There's probably something to be discussed about class. Does the book accurately portray class in Canada? What social differences the main character (what's his name--Toby?) see between Britain and Canada?

As a general rule, I think Dick Francis books age really well and don't seem dated. That's maybe worth a quick note/debate.

You can also always play "Spot the possibly gay character" With very few exceptions (and this isn't one, I don't think), there's always a gay character or a character thought to be gay (that's usually the main character).

Wow! You guys are good. I think I would have ended up going in on Tuesday going "Wasn't that fabulous?! Don't you want to read them all now?" And that being my only question.

I love the Brigham Young quote, especially since most of us in this group are Mormon, so it's even funnier (at least I think so).

Hoyland wrote: "I really like The Edge, but it's been quite some time since I've read it, so this is based on somewhat hazy recollections.

There's probably something to be discussed about class. Does the book acc..."

Hoyland,
I have obviously missed the gay characters. Can you give me an example or two?