Leaving Time

Serenity describes the ghost world as a near copy of our own. Why do you think the author chose to depict it in such a way?

Many of the characters in Leaving Time are haunted by past failures. Describe a few of these incidents and how they’ve shaped the subsequent behavior of the characters involved. 

The book focuses much attention on the long memories that elephants possess. How is this trait relevant to the plot of Leaving Time? 

Various objects function as connection points between one character and another. Name some of them and discuss how they’re used. Does the object’s functio1.  Alice talks about the difference between the way loss is experienced by elephants versus humans. Describe this difference. Is one way of grieving better than the other?n change over the course of the story?

Alice talks about the difference between the way loss is experienced by elephants versus humans. Describe this difference. Is one way of grieving better than the other?

Motherhood is an important concept in Leaving Time. Are there instances where “once a mother, always a mother” drives the plot? Give some examples.

Absence is another key concept. Think about the number of people who disappear/reappear throughout the story. Give several examples of physical and/or psychological absences.

Think about Thomas’s mental disorder. Is there a pattern to the circumstances that trigger his most violent outbursts? How does this pattern correlate with the larger themes of the novel?