Book Club Questions for Sleep by Honor Jones

WellRead's June 2025 selection was Sleep by Honor Jones in which we follow protagonist Margaret – a newly-divorced mother – as she returns to her childhood home and confronts the secrets of the place in which she grew up.

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 Sleep by Honor Jones:

• Much of the novel centres on silence – both what is said and what is withheld in families. Would Margaret’s life and her relationship with her mother be different if there was safety for her to disclose her experiences when they happened? What role has silence played in your own relationships?
  
  

• In her job, Margaret edits articles related to the #MeToo movement. What does her role say about how these issues are handled publicly and in private? Do you think it’s easier for women to speak openly about their experiences now than it was a few years ago? Are there still limits? How does Margaret face these limits? 

• Margaret’s childhood home becomes a character in many ways, a place full of tension, memory and inheritance. Is there a place in your life that carries a similar weight? How do you relate to it?
  
  

• Margaret’s journey is quiet and self reflective. Have you ever made a decision that looked simple from the outside, but felt seismic on the inside?
  
  

• Why do you think the novel is called Sleep? What role does sleep have throughout the story?
  
  

• How do you feel about the final scene of the novel? What do you think it is trying to leave us, as readers, with? 

Please note, these questions were written and distributed in June 2025.