The Children Act, Ian McEwan

The Children Act

By Ian McEwan

(Tansley Reads Rating: 57%)

 

Icebreaker

Does music have a role in your life?

 

Questions

 

1.  Do you think Fiona is partly responsible for Jack’s decision to have an affair?

 

2.  At one point in the story Fiona refers to herself as “selfish, cruel, drily ambitious”.  Do you think this is true? Should someone who is self-defined as cruel be making decisions about children’s welfare?

 

3.  When Jack comes back, Fiona responds by hiding in her work. What else did she use her job to protect herself from?

 

4.  We see a different side of Fiona through her involvement with music.  What is the role of music in her relationships with Jack, Mark and Adam?

 

5.  How would you have ruled in the first case described in The Children Act, regarding the education of Rachel and Nora Bernstein? Does Fiona approach religious freedom the same way in her ruling for Adam's case?

 

6.  Do you think Fiona makes the right decision in ruling in favour of the hospital and allowing them to treat Adam against his wishes?

 

7.  How did your impression of Adam and his parents shift throughout the novel?

 

8.  Why did Adam follow Fiona to Newcastle and why did she kiss him?

 

9.  Do you blame Fiona for what ultimately happens to Adam?

10.  If Fiona had taken the time to read “The Ballad of Adam Henry” when it arrived, do you think things might have turned out differently?

11.  How did The Children Act affect your perception of family courts? What makes it so challenging for parents and the courts alike to follow the deceptively simple mandate that "the child's welfare shall be the . . . paramount consideration"?

 

12.  Do you think they will live happily ever after?

 

 13:  Quick round: What did you think of the book? Is there anything you want to discuss that we missed?