Birthday Girl

Toward the end of the novel, Jake discovers a jar in which Jordan has stored a written list of her dreams. What do the dreams suggest about Jordan? How do they support what we have already learned about her? How, if it all, do they deviate from her established character traits?

Does the novel depict the love between Pike and Jordan as forbidden and/or taboo? In what way does the novel conform to and deviate from other age-gap romances?

How does parental neglect impact characters in the novel? How do characters with neglectful parents perpetuate or end the cycle of abuse?

Pick any three pop-culture references in the novel. How do they illustrate the novel’s themes and textual elements?

How does the dual first-person narrative build characterization and plot? How would the novel have read differently if told through one perspective or in third person?

How does the novel examine gender politics? Support your answer with examples from the text.

Jordan thinks that her sister Cam “hates what she does for a living, but she likes the money more” (26). What does Jordan’s observation say about her and her views of erotic dancing? Is Jordan a feminist? Use examples from the text to support your answer.

Identify and discuss three tropes of romance fiction in Birthday Girl. How does the novel use these tropes? How does it subvert them?