ON THE BUS

Reading Group Guide

1. Jack Sinclair seems not to fit into either world—not the world of other black kids hanging out on the streets of Roxbury, and certainly not white Charlestown High School.  How does this influence his behavior?  How does the death of his father influence him?

2.  Even as Jack tried to distance himself from Freddie Baker, another side of him seemed compelled to protect him and guide him.  Where do you think these conflicting impulses stem from?

3.  Vera, Margaret, Jack and Katie are all very much products of their environments, and yet make efforts to step out and be apart from them as well.  What makes these characters different from their friends and neighbors?

4.  Do you see similarities between Vera and Margaret?  Between Katie and Angie?  Jack and Bobby?

5.  There were indications for several months that Jack had access to more money than his two jobs would have afforded him.  Do you think Vera might have suspected he was getting money from somewhere else much earlier than when she confronted him? 

6.  Vera is frequently second-guessing herself, worrying that she might be making the wrong decisions.  Margaret doesn’t seem to have any of this self-doubt—until the end of the story.  What does this say about these two women?

7.  Margaret, like most mothers, has a blind spot where her own children are concerned.  She even lies to the police to cover for Bobby.  How much of that willful ignorance is justified? 

8.  All people are comprised of both good and bad qualities, in varying proportions.  In what proportions are these qualities manifested in Bobby Flannery, and how much of an effect does his environment have on that balance?

9.  Mr. Newcomb and Seamus Flannery are not major characters in the book, yet they exert significant influences over Vera and Margaret.  Discuss what each of these men add to the story.

10. Compare Mr. Kestler’s and Mr. Tinney’s attitudes toward, and treatment of, the black students in their classes.

11.  Margaret makes a couple of decisions at the end of the book that are completely contrary to what she was taught and how she was brought up, both socially and religiously.  Does one decision influence the other?  How does her anger and resentment of Cardinal Medeiros and the Catholic Church in general affect her decision to defy Church edicts?

12. How does Margaret’s final request of Vera and Jack reflect the evolution of her racial perspectives and attitudes?

13. The overt and blatant racism in this book is jarring by today’s sensibilities.  How has racism in this country changed or declined since 1975?