Discussion Points - My Summer Vacation

Summer camp, friend drama, and sibling insanity, My Summer Vacation is no ordinary story of summer break. Use the following questions to:     •    further connect to the character Maddie     •    have a book talk with friends or family     •    have a classroom discussion about literary elements such as plot, word choice, dialogue, and sensory language.

Plot questions:     1.    Where is the climax in this story?     2.    There are several sub-plots in the story. What are they and how do they each connect to one another and to the main plot?

Analyzing literary elements:     1.    Metaphor and simile are used through out the story. Find some places where they are used effectively and find places where they are not.     2.    Does the dialogue in the story sound authentic? Why or why not?     3.    Find places in the story where you feel the author made a good word choice and find places where the author made bad word choices.

Relating to the character:     1.    In what ways are you similar to Maddie? How are you different?     2.    Other people’s drinking deeply affects Maddie. Has this ever happened to you?     3.    Maddie deals with the resifting of friendships in this book. Has this ever happened in your own life? Why did Maddie's friendships change?     4.    Describe Maddie and Brian's relationship. How does it seem to be different from her relationship with Justin?

Submit your own discussion questions to hrgwriterwoman@gmail.com.