Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. What do you think really happened to Zorah? Why?

2. How do you feel about Sabit’s choice to use multiple narrators but exempt the Sharaf family from telling their story? Do you think it enhanced your experience, or would you have preferred to hear from the Sharafs themselves?

3. Sabit’s novel ends without fully resolving its central mystery. How did this make you feel? Have you read other books in the genre that are similarly ambiguous—for example, In the Woods by Tana French?

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

1. Consider parent-child relationships that you’ve experienced or witnessed. Do you think friction in these relationships is inevitable, especially during adolescence? Why or why not?

2. Could you relate to the Sharaf family’s implied attempts to hide their children’s behavior from the broader community? When have you presented a more “polished” version of yourself to the public?

3. Have you ever felt pressured to assimilate in a new environment (cultural, professional, etc.)? How did you handle the experience, and did you find the situation fair?

4. What do you understand “truth” to mean? Do you think it’s a matter of objective reality or subjective perception? What experiences have shaped your view?

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

1. The novel examines the “American dream” by showing a family who achieves it but experiences tragedy in the wake of their success. How does this comment on the US’s self-positioning as a land of opportunity?

2. Through its narrative structure, the novel explores the cultural impact of true crime on public consciousness. How did this novel impact your perception of true crime? Is this genre necessarily exploitative?

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

1. Like Colum McCann’s Let the Great World Spin, Sabit’s novel utilizes a nonlinear narrative structure. Discuss how this structure impacted your emotional experience as you learned new details about Zorah’s story.

2. How does Sabit leverage Zorah’s characterization to drive the various reactions to her death? How did you respond to the different narrators’ accounts?

3. Does the novel have a traditional protagonist and antagonist? How does this presence or absence affect the central conflict and plot?

4. Discuss how Sabit distinguishes her narrators’ voices. Could you identify who is speaking based on a passage of text alone? Why or why not?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. Give Zorah a voice to tell her story. How might she respond to the various characterizations of her? How might she explain what happened to her on the night she died?

2. Imagine a scenario in which a family of Americans moves to another country. What cultural challenges do you imagine them facing? How do they interact with their fellow American expatriates and with the other residents of their adopted community?