1. What common themes do you see running through these stories?

2. Which story meant the most to you personally?

3. How are David’s accounts of famous personalities similar to/different from his portrayals of family members?

4. David talks about “looking for the universal in the particular.” Discuss examples where he uses small details to illuminate larger themes.

5. David also says that his sensibility, his own outlook on life and human nature, is evident in much of his work. What are some examples?

6. In today’s world, communication is increasingly brief and of-the-moment. What place is there for long-form nonfiction in narrative writing in the age of instant messaging?

7. In what ways did your opinion of well-known figures from the worlds of sports and politics change after reading about them in this book?

8. In what ways did David’s accounts of 9/11 and the Virginia Tech shootings evoke your own memories of those events?

9. If this book can be seen as a time capsule of American life in the late 20th century and early 21st century, what do you think readers 50 or 100 years from now will find most interesting?

10. In what ways has storytelling played a role in your own life?