How does Jenny Jackson’s use of multiple third-person limited perspectives shape reader sympathy and impact the novel’s larger conflict?

What is the novel’s attitude toward marriage as a formalized institution of monogamy?

Comment on Caroline’s instinct to escape to a rural town like Greenhead as an extension of gentrification. In what ways does she use this community to sanitize her urbanized lifestyle?

How might Caroline be framed as an antagonist? In what ways does she disrupt the status quo of the novel’s world, and how does the novel push back against this framing?

Discuss Jackson’s choice to set the novel entirely from the perspective of the female characters. Why doesn’t she give Van his own perspective chapters, given his prominence in the narrative?

Does the resolution of the novel ultimately endorse the resilience of the Greenhead friend group, or does it suggest that they could grow better apart from one another?

The “shampoo effect” initially describes Van’s feelings for Bailey. To what extent does this concept of inescapable emotional history apply to other characters and relationships within the novel?

If you’ve read Jackson’s Pineapple Street (2023), compare its portrayal of insular family wealth with this novel’s exploration of insular friendships. What recurring social critiques or character types connect the two works?