Discussing The Third Step? Here are some Book Club questions to kick off the conversation…

1) Who was Cora to Frankie, other than his grandmother? What did she represent?

2) What was the significance of the frequent references to the Vietnam War? Would Frankie have made a good soldier? Was he afraid of the war or did war have a dark hidden appeal to him?

3) Given an opportunity to pursue a spiritual path, possibly nontraditional religion, would Frankie’s life and experiences differ? How?

4) Did killing become easier for Frankie?

5) Could self-forgiveness be the mechanism in life that would allow Frankie to lose his stones? Is he capable of any type of forgiveness?

6) Was the church to blame for Frankie’s ability to connect with the devil but not with God?

7) If Frankie had returned to New Orleans, do you think he and Zara would’ve had a “happily ever after?” Or was he still and always in love with Pam?

8) Did Frankie’s hatred of his weakness and addictions manifest themselves in his hatred for Billy?

9) Was Frankie a dark and deeply flawed character from birth, as he believed, or did he become this person to fit his self-image. Did  circumstances turn him into the character he eventually became?

10) What was the reason for Frankie’s near obsession with cemeteries?

11) Regarding his Stones, do you agree with Frankie that the sins of the father are passed on down to the son?

12) Do our sins and crimes accumulate over the course of our lives? Are we dragged down by their weight until we die?

13) Always an outsider, but somehow in awe of those he felt separation from, did Frankie long to belong?

14) Was Frankie jealous of the religious people he claimed taunted him and made him feel separate from God? Did he secretly want to be like them?

15) Frankie’s seeks disconnected relationships, but soon finds himself in love. Why?

16) Who/what was Landry? Ghost, spirit guide, bum?

17) Who is narrating Frankie’s story? A friend, relative? A bum in a bar? Frankie himself?