Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

How do the home lives of Greg and Earl contribute to their friendship? 

What purpose does a tight, three-month timeline serve in the pressurization of Greg’s personal growth? How would it differ if Greg was telling the story from ten years down the line rather than the summer immediately after these events?

Many characters repeat badchoices before finding a way to alter their behavior. For example, Greg lies to Rachel twice and repeatedly isolates himself, Earl smokes and often loses his temper,and Greg’s mom continues to interfere in her son’s social life. This repetitive behavior feels realistic, and it invites readers to reflect on similar experiences from their own lives. Choose three such instances and discuss what messages or lessons readers might be able to glean from them.

Greg has a limited view of the world, yet readers can understand characters beyond Greg’s observations of them. Much of the character development occurs in what is not said and what is notobservable. Identify three characters and explain what we learn about them from what Greg says and from what he leaves out.

The narrative tone and pacing of Me and Earl and the Dying Girl contribute to its emotional resonance. How are readers able to feel so much when the narrator is not?

Greg continually puts himself down or wishes himself bodily harm. What purpose does this serve in terms of developing the tension and pacing of the story?

Greg and Earl try several different attempts to make a film for Rachel. What do they learn after each attempt and how does it change their relationship with Rachel?

Greg and Earl become obsessed with offbeat, obscure films that do not resonate with their peers. Why is this important regarding the development of their individual characters,and in terms of their friendship?