Ragged Company

Content Warning: This section of the guide contains discussion of substance use, addiction, and illness or death.

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. What aspects of the “ragged company” and their bonds stood out to you most? Did you find similar themes of belonging and found-family bonds in Wagamese’s other works like Keeper’n Me?

2. The journey from “shelter” to “home” provides a framework for the novel. What significance did you find in this progression? Have you read other novels, like John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath, that explore similar themes of displacement and finding home?

3. Did your perception of the characters change throughout the novel? Which character’s transformation resonated with you most strongly? What surprised you about the paths they each ultimately chose?

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

1. Amelia describes meeting the “shadowed ones”—spirits tied to earth by sorrow or longing. Have you ever felt a connection to something beyond the physical world? How does Wagamese’s portrayal of the spiritual realm compare to your own beliefs?

2. The novel’s characters associate movies with shelter and connection. What film or form of art has provided similar comfort in your life?

3. The novel’s characters each find their own way to move forward after experiencing hardship. Reflect on a challenge you’ve overcome in your life. Did you use strategies similar to those the characters did?

4. When the group wins the lottery, they react in different ways to their sudden change in circumstances. How would you respond to such a dramatic change in fortune? Would you be most like Digger, Amelia, Timber, or Dick in your response?

5. Timber’s jade plant symbolizes resilience, hope, and the cycle of life. What objects in your own life hold special meaning or represent important relationships?

6. The “rounder” mentality involves loyalty and specific unwritten rules for survival. Have you ever been part of a community with its own unspoken codes?

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

1. Wagamese drew from his own experiences as an Indigenous person in Canada to inform Amelia’s character. In what ways does Ragged Company contribute to society’s understanding of Indigenous experiences? How does it address the disproportionate rate of unhoused people among Indigenous communities?

2. The novel presents various paths that lead people to become unhoused. What aspects of these portrayals challenge common stereotypes about unhoused individuals?

3. Substance use appears throughout the novel as both a coping mechanism and a destructive force. How does the novel portray the complex relationship between substance use and healing?

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

1. The novel unfolds through five different narrators, each with a distinct voice and perspective. What effect does this narrative structure have on the story?

2. Movies function as both a plot device and a thematic motif throughout the novel. In what ways do they develop the characters and advance the plot? Consider how specific films mentioned mirror or foreshadow events in the characters’ lives.

3. Wagamese organizes the book into four sections titled “Shelter,” “Fortune,” “Dreams,” and “Home.” How do these section titles reflect the characters’ journeys and the novel’s central themes?

4. The motif of dreams appears throughout the novel in both literal and metaphorical forms. What do these different manifestations of dreams reveal about the characters’ pasts and futures?

5. The stone house represents more than just a physical dwelling for Granite. What does this symbol reveal about the novel’s definition of “home”?

6. The book eventually reveals that the unnamed voices are Amelia and Dick’s spirits. What effect did this framing device have on your reading? What does it suggest about time, memory, and storytelling?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. Imagine that you’re writing an additional chapter set five years after the book ends. What would each surviving character be doing? Would new relationships have developed?

2. If you were to cast actors to play each of the five main characters in a film adaptation of Ragged Company, who would you choose? What qualities would the actors need to effectively portray these complex characters?

3. The novel explores how each character finds their “true destiny” and what they leave behind. If you were a character in Ragged Company, what would your destiny be? What legacy would you hope to create?

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