Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. The novel opens with Linda’s “unapologetically bizarre” desire to unite with a plane in a fiery crash. How did this surreal premise shape your initial engagement with the story? Did you find it darkly humorous, tragic, unsettling, or a combination of these?

2. How did the novel’s direct connection to Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick, from the opening line “Call me Linda” to the epigraph, influence your reading? Did framing Linda’s quest as a parallel to Captain Ahab’s monomania make her obsession feel deeper or more self-destructive to you?

3. What was your immediate reaction to the book’s ambiguous ending? Do you interpret the final scene as a literal plane crash, a shared psychological event, or something else entirely, and what made you feel that way?

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

1. The Vision Board Brunch is a ritual where characters feel pressure to present socially acceptable goals, leading Linda to create a “fraudulent board.” Think about a time you felt the need to perform a more palatable version of yourself to fit in. How did Linda’s experience navigating this social pressure resonate with you?

2. What did you think of the evolution of Linda and Karina’s friendship? Their bond is tested by secrets and deep differences, yet it culminates in an act of radical acceptance. Have you ever had a friendship that challenged you to support a loved one through choices you didn’t fully understand?

3. Linda’s job at Acuity is emotionally draining and dehumanizing. Reflect on a time in your own life when a job or task felt particularly alienating. How did you cope with the emotional toll, and how does your experience compare to Linda’s detachment or Karina’s internalization of her work’s trauma?

4. Linda develops her own system for finding meaning, from reading contrails like tea leaves to believing in the literal power of her vision boards. Do you have any personal rituals or ways of looking for signs and meaning in your everyday life? How does Linda’s unique cosmology compare to more conventional belief systems?

5. The novel portrays a world of missed connections, where characters like Dave and Simon use others to fill a void. Do you feel that sense of alienation in your own experience of modern life? What observations can you offer from your own experience to support the novel’s assertions on modern alienation?

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

1. What commentary do you think the novel is making about modern wellness culture through the Vision Board Brunches? How does it critique the societal pressure to practice “toxic positivity” and manifest a perfect, aspirational life?

2. The grim reality of content moderation at Acuity exposes a side of the tech industry that is often invisible. How did the book’s exploration of this hidden digital labor affect your understanding of the human cost required to maintain online platforms?

3. Why do you think the author chose such a surreal premise to explore themes of female desire and interiority? What does Linda’s objectum sexuality allow the novel to say about loneliness and the search for connection that a more realistic story might not be able to?

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

1. Linda narrates her own story with a candid, methodical, and often detached tone. How did her status as an unreliable narrator shape your experience of the novel? At what points, if any, did you find yourself questioning her perception of reality?

2. What is the significance of the airport secure sector in the novel? How does Folk develop this space from a “personal nirvana” and sacred sanctuary for Linda into a kind of purgatorial prison by the end?

3. Karina is an important foil to Linda, with her own journey from deep-seated anxiety to a state of surrender. How does Karina’s character arc contrast with Linda’s and what does this contrast reveal about the novel’s exploration of fate and personal agency?

4. How does Kate Folk’s blending of mundane settings with surreal events in Sky Daddy compare to other works of “weird fiction” you may have read, such as the stories of Mariana Enriquez in her collection The Dangers of Smoking in Bed?

5. The specific plane N92823 functions as Linda’s “white whale.” How does this symbol of idealized love and destiny evolve throughout the story? What is the impact of his ultimate failure to “choose” her, and how does that rejection propel the story toward its conclusion?

6. Let’s discuss the characters’ different interpretations of “surrender.” How does Karina’s final vision board and her ultimate sense of peace contrast with Linda’s lifelong desire to surrender her life to a plane?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. Imagine a chapter from the perspective of an airplane. What would the airplane’s narrative voice sound like? How would it respond to Linda’s feelings toward it?

2. Imagine you are casting a film adaptation of Sky Daddy. Which actors would you choose to play Linda, Karina, and Dave, and what qualities would make them perfect for these complex roles?

3. After the events of the novel, the remaining VBB women might try to process what happened to Linda. What do you think their next Vision Board Brunch would be like, and how might their personal goals and conversations have changed?