Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. How did the novel’s tonal variation of comedy and sincerity strike you? Did the emotional journeys of the characters feel impactful?

2. The story explores the idea of urbanites seeking an idealized life in the country, a common theme in literature. How does Country People’s take on this narrative compare to other books or films you’re familiar with that follow a similar arc?

3. What was your reaction to the final radio call from Todd on The Miscellaneous Minute? How did that ambiguous ending affect your overall interpretation of the novel’s stance on belief and mystery?

Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.

1. Miles finds a new sense of purpose in physical labor, community involvement, and teaching. Can you think of a time when you found unexpected fulfillment in something completely different from your planned path or career?

2. The Krzelewski-Petrosian family arrives in Vermont with romantic ideas about rural life, only to face a more complex reality. Have you ever idealized a place or a lifestyle, and how did your experience compare to your expectations?

3. Storytelling is central to Miles’s identity as a father, shaping his children’s view of the world in powerful ways. What role did stories, whether they were bedtime tales or family legends, play in your own upbringing?

4. What does Kate’s and Miles’s partnership reveal about the challenges of balancing professional ambition, personal passions, and family responsibilities? Which character did you relate to more, and why?

5. Many characters, from Snowflake Bentley compiling his “Encyclopedia of Foolish Errors” to Andrei dedicating himself to scything (176), pursue deeply personal, even obsessive, projects. Have you ever had a passion project or hobby that gave you a similar sense of meaning outside of work or family life?

Examine the book’s relevance to societal issues, historical events, or cultural themes.

1. What does the novel suggest about why people are drawn to fringe communities and conspiracy theories like the Wylkes Society? Where do you see modern equivalents of this kind of communal belief in our culture today?

2. The character of Candace Flaherty satirizes the influencer-driven, commodified version of homesteading and rural authenticity. In what ways do you see this performance of “authenticity” playing out on social media, and what do you think drives its appeal?

3. The novel focuses on a particular kind of modern male anxiety through characters like Miles and Andrei, who feel professionally adrift. How does the book portray the pressures on educated men to find purpose in a world where traditional markers of success are changing?

Dive into the book’s structure, characters, themes, and symbolism.

1. The narrative is rich with literary references, from Milton’s Paradise Lost to Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. How did these allusions shape your understanding of Kate’s and Miles’s worldviews, and how does the school play, in particular, mirror the magical events unfolding in the family’s life?

2. Miles’s attempt to live out a Tolstoyan fantasy by scything is a central motif. How does the novel use the famous mowing scene from Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina to explore the gap between literary ideals and lived reality?

3. What is the function of The Miscellaneous Minute in the novel’s structure? How does this recurring motif act as a Greek chorus, reflecting and amplifying the story’s main themes of folklore, community, and the absurd?

4. What role does Giuseppe, the family dog, play beyond being just a pet? How does his instinctual digging connect the domestic world of the family to the mythical, subterranean world of the Wylkesians?

5. Consider the contrast between Kate’s focused ambition and Miles’s meandering search for purpose. In what ways do they function as foils for each other, and how does their dynamic evolve by the end of the novel?

6. How do the symbolic caves and the legend of a “hollow Earth” represent more than just physical locations in the story? What do these subterranean spaces reveal about the characters’ psychological and spiritual quests?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. If you were to join the Jeremiah Wylkes Society, what kind of presentation would you give? Would you focus on historical research, personal testimony, or speculative art like Candace?

2. If you had a chance to call into The Miscellaneous Minute, what bizarre, funny, or mysterious problem would you report to Don Martel? How would your story fit into the quirky spirit of Greensbury?

3. What single image or symbol from the book do you feel would make the most compelling cover design? How does your choice represent the novel’s core themes of mystery, community, and the search for meaning?