Book Club Questions
What role does the specter of Idi Amin play in Wait for God to Notice?
Did you learn anything new from the memoir?
What do you think of Kaarina’s decision not to teach her daughters’ Finnish? Do you think she would have had different feelings about Finland and the United States now vs. the 1970s?
The author occasionally jumps into points of view that are not her own. She primarily considers experiences from her mother’s point of view, but she also considers her father’s, her sister’s, even the monkeys around their house. Why do you think she does this?
What do you think of the parents’ decisions while they were in Uganda? What would you have done differently?
Gary Fordham was the most rattled by the drunk driver that almost hit them. What danger did you think was most frightening?
Do you agree with Kaarina’s decision to write Gary’s boss?
The author is now an active environmentalist, how do you think growing up in Uganda shaped her ecological views?
In Uganda, the author is a mzungu and in the United States she is from a vague elsewhere. Where does she belong?
The title comes from a letter Kaarina wrote to her father. What else does it speak to?
Etruscan Press has an extensive Study Guide, ideal for teachers and schools, available for free. You can access it here.