Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussions of racism.

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. Discuss your impressions of the book’s genre. How did the truth about Lydia’s death reframe your understanding of the story? Did you feel as though the genre of the novel changed at that point?

2. Family dramas such as Ask Again, Yes, and Commonwealth show the various ways in which the actions of one generation can impact the next. What are some of the insights that these titles, along with Everything I Never Told You, inspire about the nature of families? 

3. Celeste Ng typically writes about families and explores different facets of Asian American cultures and identities, as demonstrated in her other novels, Little Fires Everywhere and Our Missing Hearts. What other points of overlap do you notice between these novels and Everything I Never Told You?

Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.

1. How might you explain Marilyn and Nath’s instinct to blame Jack for Lydia’s death? When something bad happens to you, do you tend to blame yourself, or do you try to find external causes for what happened?