Problem
Mia's journey to becoming an artist is almost a beautiful novella of its own. Mia's art clearly has the power to change lives. What piece of art has shaped your life in an important way? Art can be a painting, sculpture, musical album, song, film, etc. You can use about more than one piece of art and explain it as much as you can.
Answer the following questions after you have completely finished Little Fires Everywhere.
I. Shaker Heights is almost another character in the novel. Do you believe that "the best communities are planned"? Why or why not?
II. There are many different kinds of mother-daughter relationships in the novel. Which ones did you find the most compelling? Do mothers have a unique ability to spark fires, for good and ill, in us?
III. Pearl has led a singular life before arriving in Shaker, but once she meets the Richardsons, she has the chance to become a "normal" teenager. Is that a good thing?
IV. What ultimately bothers Elena most about Mia?
V. The novel begins with a great conflagration, but its conclusion is even more devastating. What do you think happens to Elena after the novel ends? To Mia and Pearl? To Izzy? Do you think Izzy ever returns to Shaker and her family. Why or why not?
VI. What does the novel title mean to you?