The Good Part

What influences Lucy’s decision to go back to being 26 despite her love for Sam and Felix? What does the novel suggest about the value of friendship as compared to romance and family?

Lucy’s time travel provides many opportunities for dramatic and situational irony. What is the effect of this irony? How does it contribute to the novel’s tone and themes?

The Good Part deals explicitly with two deaths—Zoya’s and Chloe’s—but it also considers other kinds of loss, including Lucy’s time travel and her father’s memory disorder. What does the novel suggest about grief? How does it relate to memory?

Time travel narratives often raise questions about fate versus free will. Where does The Good Part land on this topic? How does Lucy’s agency—or her sense of her agency—change over the course of the novel, and why?

How does The Good Part address the concept of “having it all” in life? Consider Lucy’s personal and professional fulfillment at 42. In what ways does she experience success and happiness? Where does her life fall short of societal expectations? How does this relate to the novel’s title?

Compare and contrast Lucy’s relationships before the time travel and after. How do her interactions with others evolve? What does this evolution suggest about emotional maturity?

Discuss the significance of Lucy’s work as a TV producer. How do images and metaphors drawn from film or TV permeate the novel, and what is the significance of this?

Consider Felix’s changing stance on whether Lucy is his “real” mother. What does the novel suggest about how identity evolves—or remains stable—across time?