Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. This memoir is a personal record of a son’s search for his father, yet it’s also a researched historical account of Qaddafi’s Libya. Did you find one aspect more compelling than the other? How did Matar balance the private grief with the public history?

2. For those of you who have read Matar’s fiction, like In the Country of Men (2016) or Anatomy of a Disappearance (2011), how did reading his memoir change your understanding of his novels? If this was your first book by Matar, did it make you want to explore his other work?

3. Hisham Matar concludes not with a definitive answer about his father’s fate, but with a quiet domestic scene on the patio. What was your reaction to this ending? In a story defined by the search for truth, what does this final image suggest about what it means to find resolution and to endure?

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

1. Matar writes about the deep conflict of returning home after a long exile, fearing that Libya would take even more from him than it already had. Have you ever felt a similar tension when returning to a place from your past? What was your experience like?

2. Matar describes his long-standing practice of visiting a single painting at a museum to process his grief and uncertainty. Does this ritual resonate with you? What role has art, music, or literature played in helping you navigate difficult or uncertain times in your own life?

3. The discovery of his father’s early short stories and his grandfather’s buried past reveals how much of one’s family history can remain hidden. Do you have family stories that were only revealed to you later in life? How did learning about them change your perception of your relatives or your own identity?

4. At one point, Matar realizes that certainty, even of his father’s death, is preferable to the torment of false hope. What are your thoughts on this idea? Have you ever felt that hope was more damaging to you than accepting a widely-believed narrative?

5. Matar’s experience living as “Bob” at boarding school illustrates the heavy weight of carrying a secret identity to protect oneself or one’s family. Can you think of a time when you felt you had to present a different version of yourself to the world? How did it impact you?

6. The emotional reunion and subsequent silence between Matar and his childhood friend, Hamza, whose father worked for the regime, emphasizes the novel’s political divides. Have you ever felt alienated from a loved one by politics or current affairs? How did this change your relationships?

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

1. The Return recounts the psychological tactics used by regimes like Qaddafi’s to maintain control, both at home and abroad. What does the memoir say about the nature of political dissidence in these circumstances?

2. Matar’s campaign to find his father involved human rights organizations, British officials, and direct negotiation with Seif el-Islam Qaddafi. What does the book reveal about the relationship between global powers and their goals?

3. The Benghazi courthouse is transformed into a memorial, covered with photographs of the victims of the Abu Salim massacre. What role does the memoir present of public memorials and acts of collective remembrance in healing and cultural development?

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

1. Matar organizes the memoir with a non-linear structure, weaving his 2012 return trip with memories from his childhood, his father’s imprisonment, and his family’s long history of resistance. What is the effect of this fluid, associative timeline on the memoir’s core characters and themes?

2. What is the significance of the “bottomless abyss,” a phrase Jaballa uses in a smuggled letter? How does this symbol evolve throughout the text?

3. The narrative makes several direct references to Homer’s The Odyssey, comparing Matar’s search to Telemachus’s quest for his lost father, Odysseus. What is the purpose of this intertextual reference in shaping Matar’s character arc or the broader narrative?

4. Seif el-Islam Qaddafi presents himself as a modern reformer yet ultimately reveals his dedication to suppressing rebellion. How does Matar build the character of the dictator’s son through their tense interactions? What does Seif’s role in the narrative suggest about the nature of power?

5. Poetry and writing are central motifs, from Jaballa reciting alam in his cell to Uncle Mahmoud’s pillowcase manuscript. How do different artforms function throughout the memoir? How does art contribute to Matar’s desire to be reintegrated into his culture?

6. Analyze the novel’s opening and closing scenes, noting their language, mood, and events. How do they compare and contrast? What does closing the novel this way imply about Matar’s character and his goals?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. The book ends without a physical grave for Jaballa Matar, leaving his memory tied to stories and artifacts like his letters. If you were commissioned to design a public memorial to Jaballa and the other disappeared victims of the regime, what form would it take? What materials or concepts would you use to convey the nature of ambiguous loss and enduring resistance?

2. Imagine you discovered another artifact that survived Abu Salim prison, similar to Uncle Mahmoud’s pillowcase manuscript. What would this object be, and what story would it tell? Describe its appearance and the message it carries from the past.

3. Consider the different forms of inheritance in the book, from Grandfather Hamed’s un-removed bullet to Jaballa’s mantra to “work and survive.” If you were to write a letter to a future generation of your own family encapsulating a core value you’d want them to carry forward, what would its central message be?