Worst Case Scenario

How does Newman use vivid figurative language and short, choppy syntax to heighten the narrative tension? Use specific examples from the text to support your discussion.

Identify one internal and one external conflict featured in the novel. How are these conflicts resolved, and how do the characters’ internal conflicts affect their external decisions?

Discuss how the small-town setting of Waketa impacts the novel’s characters. In what ways does the town become a character in its own right?

How does the reality of Ethan and Joss’s past romantic relationship affect their current attitudes towards each other? Do they ever resolve their differences?

Analyze the character of R.J. Why does he change his decision to remain separated from the crisis, and what does this reversal imply about his true nature?

Compare Joss’s and Dani’s actions within the context of the broader crisis. Analyze the ethical dilemmas surrounding their choices and decide whether one or the other holds the moral high ground or if neither of them do.

Consider Dani’s approach to rescuing Connor. How does her own experience as a mother affect her demeanor when she addresses him?

What role does religion play in the novel? Discuss Reverend Michaels’s actions on behalf of his community and consider the novel’s various references to sacred texts from one faith or another.