'A Fortunate Age' by Joanna Smith Rakoff - Book Club Discussion Questions

Joanna Smith Rakoff’s debut novel, A Fortunate Age, tells the story of a group of friends from college who move to New York City together and find their life paths diverging and their friendships changing. Use these book club discussion questions on A Fortunate Age to delve into Rakoff's novel with your reading group.

Spoiler Warning: These book club discussion questions reveal important details about A Fortunate Age by Joanna Smith Rakoff. Finish the book before reading on.

1. Why do you think A Fortunate Age opens with Lil’s wedding and closes with her funeral? Is she the main character of the story?

2. What significance does the Tal Morgenstern character play in A Fortunate Age?

3. Which character do you think was the happiest, by the end of the novel?

4. The "Acknowledgments" section notes that Joanna Smith Rakoff fashioned A Fortunate Age after Mary McCarthy’s The Group. If you have read The Group, compare the two books.

5. Several authors have examined New York during and immediately following 9/11. Does Rakoff's novel reveal anything about the city during this period?

6. Rate A Fortunate Age on a scale of 1 to 5.