WellRead's November 2024 selection was Dusk by Robbie Arnott. In Dusk, we follow Floyd and Iris on an adventure full of peril and shady characters as they hunt for an infamous panther that's doing damage to livestock and livelihoods.

Use these discussion questions to engage with the book further, whether in a book club with friends, or just on your own as you digest the story. 

Reading questions for Dusk by Robbie Arnott:

• As Dusk unfolds, we get glimpses into the chequered histories of Iris and Floyd. Did their family and their story help you to empathise with them or influence your perceptions of their characters?

• There are more than a few betrayals in this story – which betrayal do you think was the most unexpected?

• In an interview with The Garret podcast, after his third novel, Limberlost, Robbie Arnott says “I'm just fascinated by our relationship with the natural world and particularly animals and wild animals … when we're faced with a wild creature, we're completely yanked out of the civilised world we know and all the comforts and manners and ways of behaviour in which we know how to conduct ourselves. All that flies out the window when we have to revert to an almost animalistic reaction in relationship with something.” What do you think of the way he used the natural world and the non-human elements of our world to show this in Dusk?

• Which characters surprised you the most and who did you suspect wasn’t all that they seemed? Were you proven right or wrong? 

• “Iris didn’t know anyone properly. With the exception of Floyd who she sometimes thought she knew too well. She wondered if a bit of mystery between them might have made life more interesting. Less secure, sure, but with more capacity for surprise.” What did you make of the sibling bond through the story? Do you think either sibling could have tackled this journey completely on their own?

Please note, these questions were written and distributed in November 2024.