House

Reading Guides

Reading Group Guide

1. When we first meet Jack and Stephanie, they're on their way to counseling but Jack thinks their marriage is truly beyond repair. How has their relationship changed by the end of the novel?
    
2. Discuss the rules that were written on the tin can. Why do you think White chose those particular rules? What was your initial reaction to them?
    
3. When the game first started, what did you think the outcome would be? How did your expectations change as more information was revealed?
    
4. Was there one particular character that you related to? If you had been one of the players, how do you think you would have fared?
    
5. Throughout the game, the players are forced to make choices--from what door to open to whom to kill. What were some of the bad choices that were made? The good choices? What would you have done differently?
    
6. What do you think White meant when he said, "where no one was watching and the darkness had swallowed all light" (pg. 99)? Is he referring to literal darkness?
    
7. At one point, Jack realized that "death hunted them all, and the only way to survive might very well be to kill." Is murder ever an acceptable action? How does self-defense figure into the equation?
    
8. Why do you think the mirrors in the basement reflected objects but not people?
    
9. Betty, Stewart, and Pete are all very focused on sin. What do they know that Jack, Stephanie, Randy, and Leslie do not?
    
10. Initially, Susan hums--rather than yelling or screaming--to let them know that she is in the house. Why do you think she does that?
     
11. While hiding in the closet, Stephanie thinks about what it means to be a "practical atheist"--to believe in God but not follow his ways. Do you know any practical atheists? Have you ever acted like a practical atheist?
     
12. After Jack meets Susan, he refuses to leave the house without her. Why do you think he felt such a strong sense of responsibility for her? Do you think his feelings were well-founded?
     
13. White tells Randy that "even the innocent are guilty." What do you think he means by that? Do you agree with him?
     
14. Several times, Jack sees Susan's lips moving, but can't hear any words. What prevents him from hearing her? If he had listened to her sooner, how might the night have been different?
     
15. Which part of the game was the most disturbing or frightening to you? Why?
     
16. If a house mirrored your heart, would the house be haunted or hospitable?
     
17. When the police officers can't find White's body with Randy's and Leslie's, what do you think has happened to him? Do you think he'll show up somewhere else? What do you think will happen to Betty, Pete, and Stewart?
     
18. Do you think there is any significance to the villain's name being White?