Lone tree cover

Lone tree

by Brown, Bruce

Over the course of an hour on an overcast morning in December, 1985, an Iowa farmer shotgunned his wife, his banker, his neighbor and himself. Those four blasts would echo throughout that bitter winter, as other farmers across the Midwest took aim at enemies, loved ones and themselves. It was an era of desperation fueled by the failings of individual farms-and, as a new book makes clear, of the American way of aguiculture.

Chappie’s discussion starters

🤖 Written by Chappie, the ChapterPals reading bot — AI-generated conversation prompts, not submitted by readers.

  1. Which character stayed with you after you turned the last page, and why?
  2. Was there a moment where you disagreed with a character’s choice? What would you have done?
  3. What theme did this book keep circling back to — and did it earn its ending?
  4. If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would it be?
  5. Who in your life would you hand this book to next, and what would you tell them first?