1. Discuss the meaning of the title.

How are the "good times" different for each of the three main characters? For Polly? For the community? What is the significance of the homecoming theme?

2. When Trav is arrested for shoplifting (Chapter 12), why does he call Buck instead of his father?

3. After Trav's death, Kate tells Buck that there were "little things" that they should have seen as signs of Trav's problems. What were some of them?

4. Compare the description of Polly's room (Chapter 9) to Trav's room (Chapter 4). What insight does each give you into the personality of the person who lives there?

5. Trav tells Buck (Chapter 4) that he needs the collections and toys in his room to remember himself. What does he mean?

6. What problems does Kate have dealing with her mother and how does she solve them?

7. When Skeeter Calhoun first loses control in Sherri...