Discussion Guide
The Berlin Letters
These book club questions are from the author's website. A full book club kit can be found here.
Book club questions for The Berlin Letters by Katherine Reay
Use these discussion questions to guide your next book club meeting.
How do you feel about Walther’s decision to share Haris’s letters with a journalist?
Do you think Walther should have told Luisa her father was alive? Why or why not? Were his secrets justified?
Luisa begins to grasp the fear that continues to affect her Oma’s life. Do you think she’ll ever fully understand? What does that say or mean with regard to our ability to understand each other?
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Create My ClubWould you have risked everything and traveled to Berlin? Why or why not?
What do you think of Luisa’s initial plan? And considering how little information was conveyed over the wall, was she wrong to hope it might work?
Did the story change your thoughts regarding punks in Eastern Europe? What do you think about music and dress as a form of protest?
How would life feel when, at any moment, anyone, including your best friend, could be watching and reporting to the government about you?
Did you enjoy the split- time scene between Haris and Luisa as they raced away from the Stasi for their “one hour” on November 9, 1989? Do you believe that, despite hearing the same words, two people can perceive things so differently during a single event
The Berlin Letters Book Club Questions PDF
Download a printable PDF of these discussion questions to bring to your meeting.