Tourist Season Questions and Answers

1. Why does Iris initially resist the monks’ claim that she is the reincarnation of Saint Amar-jampa in "Chosen"?

Iris, a Miami speech therapist, pushes back against Lu and Wangrit’s announcement because it clashes with her secular, modern identity. She finds the idea preposterous and resents the abrupt disruption to her life with her husband Aaron. Her resistance is rooted in skepticism and a discomfort with the mystical, which the story explores as she gradually accepts her role as a cultural bridge. The evidence shows her initial frustration with the lack of direct instruction during her training on a treadmill, highlighting her Western desire for concrete proof.

2. What secret does Win reveal to Sheila in "The Other Mother" that forces her to flee Mobile?

Win admits he kidnapped their adopted daughter Royal from a Memphis airport restroom years earlier. Sheila, who believed the adoption was legitimate, is horrified and flees to live on her nephew’s air mattress while working at Dillard’s. The revelation shatters her understanding of their marriage and motherhood. Evidence from the outline confirms that Win’s confession about the kidnapping is the catalyst for Sheila’s guilt-ridden flight, as she decides to protect Royal by making her own life a lie.

3. In "Fill In the Blank," how does Garland’s personality test foreshadow her later criminal behavior?

The test reveals Garland’s hunger for risk and her unresolved ties to her dead mother. This hunger drives her to commit a robbery with her roommate Linda, even though she feels no genuine remorse afterward. The story shows that her inability to answer the test’s final question about a good life reflects her moral emptiness, setting the stage for more reckless acts in "Sweethearts" where she burns a fish camp and flees.

4. What is the significance of Irv Snyder’s Polaroid photos during the St. Augustine trip in "Tourist Season"?

Irv takes explicit Polaroids of his wife Belle to please her impotent husband, as revealed when Frieda retrieves the photos after his collapse. The images expose the hidden sexual and emotional tensions within an elderly couple. This incident triggers a frank argument between Frieda and Milt about their own marriage and lost purpose. The evidence from the chapter shows that Irv’s photography is a desperate attempt to recapture intimacy and youth, mirroring Frieda’s own nostalgia for her WASP flying days.

5. What role does the medication Klonopin play in Janet’s fate in "Rapture"?

Janet takes Klonopin for her panic disorder, unaware that the drug intensifies with depth during her scuba dive. At forty feet, the concentration triples, producing euphoria and disorientation. This explains why she removes her flippers and descends alone, unable to recognize danger. The dive operator explains the deadly effects of compression to Gordon after she disappears. The story emphasizes that her medication, combined with her emotional state from a failing marriage, makes her vulnerable to a rapture-like trance.

6. Why does the author use alternating points of view between Jill and Patricia in "The Hottest Spot on Earth"?

The technique highlights their clashing perspectives: Jill, a slash fiction writer, resents Patricia’s academic condescension, while Patricia views Jill as unserious. By shifting viewpoints, the story deepens the conflict and eventual bonding during their arrest at the Nevada Nuclear Test Site. The reading group questions suggest that this rare technique allows readers to see both women’s internal judgments, ultimately showing how they push apart yet later influence each other’s work.

7. In "Sweethearts," what does Garland’s decision to burn Sheriff Coffey’s fish camp reveal about her character?

Garland sets the camp on fire after Clarence brings another woman for a threesome, feeling betrayed. The act symbolizes her rejection of male power and control, as well as her destructive impulsiveness. It echoes her earlier risk-taking in "Fill In the Blank" and forces her to flee Sweetheart. Evidence from the outline shows that this fire is a turning point: she grabs Clarence’s revolver, forces the couple to leave, then burns the camp, underscoring her inability to confront pain without violence.

8. Why does Abby Presner keep the drug dealer’s pager number for months in "Crash Course"?

Abby holds onto the pager number with the code 666 because she is troubled by whether her empathy was unique enough to change his fate. After the encounter, she experiences delayed terror and drinks heavily. The story suggests she keeps the number as a talisman of guilt and curiosity. The evidence from the outline confirms that she discards it only after months, unable to resolve the question of her genuine connection with the dealer.

9. In "The Summer of Questions," what family secret does David Goldring reveal to Riva, and how does it change her view of her father?

David reveals that Riva’s father stole the Goldring payroll to feed a gambling addiction. This shatters Riva’s family image, turning her father from a respectable provider into a thief. The secret explains the tension between the cousins and forces Riva to see herself as complicit through observation. The story shows her gradual awareness of class and shame, a theme that shapes her subsequent actions and suspicions about David’s infidelity with Alma.

10. In "Laws of Nature," is Helen’s transformation literal or metaphorical? What evidence supports the author’s intention?

Helen’s de-aging is presented as literal: she checks mirrors as her hair darkens, skin firms, and a wolf tail grows. The story blends magic realism with everyday details like Claude’s affair and Benita’s comments about Mexican animal transformations. The reading group questions ask whether it is a metaphor or fable, but Shomer’s interview confirms she used a "what if" approach, making the transformation a visceral release from aging and invisibility.

11. In "Chosen," how does Iris’s training in Tibet challenge her identity as a secular American?

Iris undergoes training through books and sounds while walking a treadmill, a method that frustrates her because it lacks direct instruction. This passive, meditative approach contrasts with her active, result-oriented Miami life. Meeting the Dalai Lama forces her to accept ambiguity and become a bridge between cultures. The outline shows that her skepticism gives way to a new identity that includes both her American pragmatism and Tibetan spiritual openness, symbolized by Lu and Wangrit’s adaptation to Florida.

12. In "The Other Mother," how does class privilege shape Sheila’s reaction to Win’s kidnapping of Royal?

Sheila enjoyed a wealthy lifestyle—custom highlights, beaded dresses, and gold cards—until Win’s confession leaves her "as poor as a sparrow." Her guilt is entangled with privilege: she misses the pleasure money bought and feels spoiled. The evidence shows she must learn humility and considers returning to Mobile to protect Royal, understanding that her life must become a lie. The story critiques how class enables her earlier naivety about the adoption.

13. In "Rapture," how does Janet’s marriage to Gordon contribute to her decision to descend alone?

Janet and Gordon are on a final vacation before divorce, having reduced their marriage to a "polemic debate." Gordon’s inability to share dreams makes her feel isolated. The separation from her diving buddy Earl, combined with the Klonopin, leads her to embrace solitude as "mysterious and intense pleasure." The flashbacks show her yearning for the joyful parenting years, contrasting with the present disconnection, making the ocean’s depths more appealing than returning to Gordon.

14. In "Sweethearts," what is the role of race in Garland’s relationship with the housekeeper Carlene?

Carlene serves as a confidante and witness to Garland’s troubled home life, but racial and class hierarchies keep their distance. When Garland flees, she leaves a farewell note for Carlene, who later receives a call from her in New York. The outline and reading group questions highlight that race complicates their bond: Carlene is both motherly and subordinate, and Garland’s privilege allows her to escape whereas Carlene remains in Sweetheart.

15. What does it mean for characters in Tourist Season to be "tourists in their own lives"?

The phrase from the reading group questions describes characters who experience their own lives as temporary, unsettled observers. Iris becomes a tourist in Tibetan culture; Sheila floats between her mother’s and nephew’s homes; Garland drifts from crime to crime; Helen transforms into a wolf. They all leave old lives behind, driven by internal or external catalysts, treating their identities as landscapes to explore rather than settle. This tourism metaphor ties the collection together, emphasizing the transient nature of belonging.