Forever, Interrupted: A Novel

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In The Year of Magical Thinking (the book Ana buys for Elsie), Joan Didion writes:“Marriage is memory, marriage is time. Marriage is not only time: it is also, paradoxically, the denial of time.” What do you think she means by this? Pretend you are casting the film version of Forever, Interrupted. Who would play Elsie and Ben? Susan and Ana? What about Mr. Callahan? When Elsie first arrives at Susan’s house, she realizes:“I can’t help but think that maybe because it’s okay to cry, I can’t” (p. 261). Can you find some other concrete examples of the grieving process that are illustrated in the book? Were there particular moments of Elsie’s (or Susan’s) mourning that especially resonated with you?

Touching and powerful...Reid masterfully grabs hold of the heartstrings and doesn't let go. A stunning first novel.”​ — Publishers Weekly (starred review)In all honesty, I can only handle reading stories like this at very specific times. I usually end up "sitting" on them for months (or years) after I hear about them while I mentally work up the courage to read them. And then I wait for just the right mood to hit me before I start reading. But ultimately, they often end up as favorites because of the intensity of the emo

I look at my face and I think that I had someone who loved this face. And now he’s gone. And now no one loves my face anymore.” Taylor Jenkins Reid What?” I said as I pulled out the menu. I don’t know why I even bothered to look at the menu. I ate eggs Benedict every Saturday morning.

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I really didn’t think this was going to happen. I thought bad things only happened to people with hubris. They don’t happen to people like me, people that know how fragile life is, people that respect the authority of a higher power. But it has. It has happened to me.” Taylor Jenkins Reid

My eyes are parched from crying, my limbs weak… I shuffle over to Ben’s side of the bed as I get groggy and fall asleep. “I love you,” I say, and for the first time, there’s no one to hear it.I also really liked the supporting characters, particularly Ana and Mr Callaghan. I also liked Elsie’s love of the library and her work there and how the book highlights the importance libraries can have on a community. Turn to the scene where Ben and Elsie are driving to Las Vegas and, as a group, read aloud the argument that they get into. Could you see each point of view, or did you side more with Elsie or Ben? Should one of them have handled the conversation differently? I don’t know,” he says, starting to rub my feet again. “I just like the idea of both our names together.”

I’ve been thinking about resolutions,” Ana said, offering me some of her iced tea while I waited for mine to get there. I declined because I knew if I had some of hers, she’d take that as license to drink some of mine when it arrived and she’d drink my whole damn glass. I’d known her long enough to know where to draw my boundaries and how to draw them so she wouldn’t notice. I was going to wake up early tomorrow and go into the bathroom and write ‘I love you’ on the mirror with a bar of soap.” Taylor Jenkins Reid Revisit Susan’s quote in question #6. Do you think this argument could be applied to the institution of marriage more generally? That is to say, if it doesn’t matter whether Elsie and Ben were married for nine days or zero, does marriage matter at all? Starred Review. Touching and powerful...Reid masterfully grabs hold of the heartstrings and doesn't let go. A stunning first novel." - Publishers Weekly From newlywed to widower in the space of nine days, Elsie Porter must face her grieving mother-in-law, who was unaware of Elsie’s existence…

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My body calms. My eyes dry. My face freezes, and my gaze falls onto a scaffolding and stays there. My arms feel numb. I’m not sure if I’m standing or sitting. No, he was absolutely not going to be shot down. But I was now embarrassed and trying hard not to seem eager. I smiled wide at him, unable to keep the canary feathers in my mouth. “Your pizza is going to get cold,” I told him.