Plainsong Questions for Guided Reading

1. At Loomis Chaffee we believe that each of us has a responsibility to

work for the common good, the good of the community. In Kent Harufs
novel about Holt, Colorado, many characters work generously on behalf
of others. Name several and consider how each contributes to the
greater good.

2. Though coming of age, transitioning between childhood and

adulthood, is a universal topic, how does Haruf make it fresh and
distinctive as Ike and Bobby navigate their challenging and confusing
passage?

3. Haruf divides his novel into chapters named for the major characters.
While each chapter centers on the characters for whom it is named, the
characters do not tell their own stories in their own voices. Instead a
narrator tells us the story, and the characters say very little to each
other. How does that artistic decision affect the novel and you as the
reader?

4. When Maggie goes out to the farm to make a request of the McPheron
brothers she says, This is your chance(110). Many times and in many
ways, several characters come to that moment when they are given a
chance to reach out in a new direction. Consider several and how they
react to the challenge.

5. Family comes in all shapes and sizes and building family is an

extremely important element in this novel. When people who are not
born to be family form an alliance, how are they together?

6. While there is no sugar coating of the pain and sadness in this novel,
humor keeps it upbeat and positive. Mark the passages you consider
relevant and consider how the characters help lighten the darkness?

7. Plainsong is an ancient, traditional form of vocal music in which two

or more relatively independent voices are sounded together, each voice
very important. In this novel, how are the voices of those ironically often
marginalized, isolated and beyond their prime celebrated?