Lunch at the Picadilly
by Clyde Edgerton
List Price: $13.95
Pages: 288
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 0345476786
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Welcome to the Rosehaven Convalescence Center in beautiful Listre, North Carolina. Recuperating after a recent fall, Lil Olive sits on the front porch, chitchatting with and rocking right alongside the regulars. There's tiny Maudie Lowe with her cane that seems too tall; Beatrice Satterwhite, whose fancy three-wheeled walker is a Cadillac among Chevrolets; Clara Cochran, who cusses as frequently as she takes a breath; and L. Ray Flowers, the freelance preacher who strums a mean guitar, and who reveals his dream of forming a national movement to unite churches and nursing homes ("Nurches of America"). Keeping a watchful eye on them all is Carl, Lil's middle-age bachelor nephew with a heart of gold and the patience of a saint. But Lil is restless, eager to get back to her own apartment. She wants some adventure. And before long, tranquil Rosehaven is turned upside down. . . .
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1. Compare the relationship of Carl and Lil with similar relationships you know about or have experienced.
2. How does the dementia of characters in this novel compare with actual cases you know about?
3. Did the episode about Lil's marriage certificate add to or detract from the novel's plot? Why?
4. Would you rate the moral life of L. Ray Flowers "good," "bad," or somewhere in between? Why?
5. Does the "back story" about Darla and L. Ray detract from or add to the novel?
6. Describe differences you have observed among residences for the elderly. Why do you believe these differences exist?
7. Where have you confronted situations and language such as that found in the prologue to Lunch at the Piccadilly?
8. Does the music written by Carl and L. Ray add to or distract from the plot of the novel? Why?
9. Do you detect any changes in Carl during the story? If so, elaborate.
10. How do you feel about the use of humor in a story about the elderly?
11. In two short sentences, say what you believe this novel is about.
12. Would you describe the ending of this novel as upbeat? a downer? something else? Why?
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"Graceful and often painfully funny . . . Among the delights here are the smart dialogue, the pointed satire . .. and most of all, the chorus of idiosyncratic, opinionated characters."
—The New York Times Book Review
"A DECEPTIVELY SIMPLE TALE THAT BRIMS WITH COMPASSION AND WISDOM, weaving laugh-out-loud set pieces with infinitely tender observations about the human condition. . . . Once again, Edgerton has crafted a little treasure of a novel-funny, wistful, packed with truth and humanity."
—Charlotte Observer
"[A] Southern tale-spinning master . . . The bonus of the novel is its vintage sense of humor-trademark Edgerton-strewn throughout the story."
—Rocky Mountain News
"A vivid and affecting portrait of the way many of us struggle- and, when possible, take comfort-in the real world."
—People
