Goodbye Earl(114)
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About the Author
Leesa CrossSmith is a homemaker and the author of Every Kiss a War, Whiskey & Ribbons, So We Can Glow, This Close to Okay, and Half-Blown Rose. She lives in Kentucky with her husband and their two teenagers. Find more at LeesaCrossSmith.com.
Facebook: LCrossSmith Twitter: @LeesaCrossSmith Instagram: @LeesaCrossSmith
Reading Group Guide
Discussion Questions
When Kasey returns to Goldie for the first time in fifteen years, she expresses many conflicting emotions. “How could the place she’d grown to hate so much look so pretty? How could even the rotten parts make her wistful?” How does this complex sense of home shape her character? Do you find Kasey’s attitude toward her hometown relatable?
This story is told in parallel timelines and several different points of view, with the narrative jumping back and forth between 2004 and 2019 as well as between RACK’s perspectives. What impact do these choices have on the book and how you experience it?
Rosemarie prides herself on being an open and honest person, but she keeps several weighty secrets over the course of the novel. How do these secrets affect her relationships with her loved ones?
What are the different ways love and loyalty are expressed in this book?
Ada is the main person taking care of her mother in the 2019 timeline, and she eventually has to ask her brothers for more support. What factors do you think contribute to the expectations—either explicit or implicit—Ada’s family has for her?
How is Caroline’s relationship to motherhood impacted by her relationship with her own mother? What other kinds of mother-daughter relationships do we see?
This novel portrays masculinity on a wide spectrum, from healthy to toxic. Discuss the male characters, where they fall on the spectrum, and how this manifests in their behavior. What factors do you think contributed to their development? Does considering these questions change the way you view men in your own life?
How does religion influence the lives of RACK? What are the differences in their individual relationships with religion?
Rosemarie, Ada, and Kasey all have different ways of coping with their emotions after they murder Trey. What do their reactions say about their characters?
Goodbye Earl’s subtitle is “A Revenge Novel.” Discuss the role of revenge in the book. How does each girl/woman justify it? When do you think revenge is necessary? Do you agree with the characterization of RACK’s actions as “revenge,” or would you describe them in a different way?
Many people in the town of Goldie are quick to jump to Caroline and the rest of RACK’s defense when Trey is found dead. What other benefits are there to this type of small-town community? What drawbacks are there?
How does Rosemarie’s cancer affect her perspective on life?
What are the many ways women in this novel demonstrate agency?
Music plays a big role in Goodbye Earl, from the novel’s name to the mentions of other songs and artists scattered throughout the story. What were the most fundamental songs of your own teenage years? Do you return to them as an adult?
A Conversation with Leesa Cross-Smith
The title Goodbye Earl references The Chicks song of the same name, and RACK are all big fans of their music. What impact did The Chicks have on the creation of this novel?
I remember the exact moment I heard “Goodbye Earl” for the first time. I remember exactly where I was and who I was with. I was in college, at work at the coffee shop and one of my best friends, Sarah, was listening to The Chicks on her Walkman, and I listened to it on there. We loved it so much and laughed about it a lot and it instantly felt like a song we’d loved forever. I absolutely love those sorts of moments and all that nostalgia! And when I saw the video, I just loved how campy it was…how it was filled with so much intense girl power…how it brought up a dark, serious issue and “fixed” it quickly in the way that only dreams can. I love the sisterhood of The Chicks and the sisterhood I have with the women in my life. I wanted all of that in a novel too—a friendship book…a revenge novel…a quirky, romantic small town in the summer—a book that feels like all the best parts of a country song.
Music in general comes up often, and two central characters (Rosemarie and Leo) are musicians. What is the importance of music to your characters, and what is its importance to you and your writing? What artists/songs were you listening to while you were writing this book?
All of my books are imbued with music, even when I don’t set out to do it! It just comes out of me during the process, honestly. I always attach a song or a musical artist to a character, or if I’m writing a couple in a relationship…I know what “their song” would be. I make playlists for all of my books, and Goodbye Earl is no different. Lots of nostalgic country songs and plenty of The Chicks…and everything from Norah Jones to George Michael and Usher. And this time around it was a lot of fun because I was writing two time periods, so I got to revisit 2004 and 2019. Music is a perfect time machine.
I don’t listen to music with words (in English) while I’m actually sitting down to work, but I always have a “general vibes” playlist to come back to when I’m writing a book. And it just made sense for both Rosemarie and Leo to be musicians. Rosemarie’s parents are musicians and Leo’s mother is a pianist. They were born loving music and it’s also something they share.