Episode 4 - "The Green Mile," Part 3

"The Green Mile"
Part 3 - Coffey's Hands 3/23/2007

Hello everyone,

I profusely apologize for taking so long to grt this episode out to all of you. Things have been rather crazy as of late, and I've also been suffering the ole sinus and cold crud. I didn't want to do a podcast while I was sniffling and hacking up my lungs. I'm back now and ready to roll again. :)

We now have 34 subscribers!!!

I am changing the format just a little bit. Instead of doing only 5-6 chapters of this book, I've decided that we'll cover the part we're discussing in its entirety so we can get through the book a little faster. There are other wonderful books to discuss, so there's really no need for us to drag one out unnecessarily. Therefore, in this episode, we've covered all of Part 3. It will make the podcast just a bit longer, but I'm certain that nobody will have a problem with that.

Here are the study questions for this session:

Chapter 1

In the nursing home, Paul watches “Kiss of Death” starring Richard Widmark on AMC. The character Widmark plays and how the actor looks reminds Paul of Wharton, and it freaks him out a bit. Are you surprised that Paul reacted this way?

Chapter 2

Wharton’s attack on Dean continues in this chapter and all hell breaks loose. Harry yells for Percy to hit Wharton, but Percy just stands there. Why doesn’t Percy do anything?

Chapter 3

This is the first time we see Coffey’s powers at work when he heals Paul’s bladder infection. What was your first impression of this?

Are there limits to Coffey’s powers? Do you feel that Coffey is aware of any limits he has?

Chapter 4

In this chapter, Paul goes to see Hammersmith, the reporter who wrote the news stories about Coffey. As they talk, Hammersmith explains about the dog his family used to have (the dog, for no apparent reason, attacked Hammersmith’s son and severely disfigures his face), saying that the dog just had a mind to attack as did Coffey. Hammersmith also believes that Coffey is guilty of the murders he was charged with. Do you agree or disagree on both of these points? Why or why not?

Chapter 5

Wharton stirs up trouble by peeing on Harry and then later spitting a moon pie in Brutal’s face. On both of these occasions, he is hauled kicking and screaming into the restraint room. Do you feel that this chapter gives us comic relief or is helpful in giving bus more insight as to Wharton’s character?

Chapter 6

Paul and Janice go to see Melinda, and it saddens them to see her in the condition she is in. During and after this visit, Paul thinks about Coffey and what his powers can do. Do you think Paul realizes that he is actually considering somehow making it possible for Coffey to help Melinda?

Again, Paul thinks about Del’s execution and Percy’s attitude toward this particular prisoner. Paul’s sense of foreboding does not go away. Does yours?

Chapter 7

Del’s execution is drawing closer, and the rehearsals must be carried out. Del and Mr. Jingles are taken to Mr. Anderson’s office so Mr. Jingles can show him and some others his tricks. This seems to serve as a distraction for Del in order to keep him as unalarmed as possible. Do you think Paul and the others feel sorry for Del? Do you think they would extend themselves like this for other prisoners?

Chapter 8

Paul feels that the rehearsals have gone well and that Percy is actually performing up to scratch this time. Do you think Paul feels better about the situation or is he still feeling uneasy? Do you feel uneasy or do you think things will go well?

Percy walks too close to the cells after everyone comes back from rehearsing for Del’s execution and Wharton grabs him. It terrifies Percy, and he wets himself. Del laughs, and Wharton harangues him. Percy is utterly humiliated. Do you think he overreacts? Do you think this spurs on Percy’s hatred for Del?

Chapters 9 & 10

It is the night before Del’s execution, and Paul is talking to him about what will happen. Del is more worried about what will happen to Mr. Jingles, and it’s finally decided that the mouse will go to Mouseville? Do you think that Del believes there is such a place?

As they are talking, Mr. Jingles gets out of Del’s cell to retrieve the spool. Percy then steps on him and kills him, saying, “I knew I’d get him eventually.” Who is the “him” that Percy refers to – Del or Mr. Jingles? What do you think possessed Percy to do such a thing?

There are several ways for you to be mentioned on the show:

• Send me a hello with your first name and the state you are from
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You can leave feedback via several ways:

• E-mailing me here
• Leaving a comment on this website
• Calling our voice mail number and leaving a message. The number to call is 206-350-2613.

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Until next time. Happy reading. :)

Sharon

Episode 3 - "The Green Mile" Part 2, Chapters 7-11 - 2/28/07

"The Green Mile"
Part 2, Chapters 7-11

In this episode, we finished Part 2 of "The Green Mile" and will soon move on to Part 3. Discussion questions for this session are below. Thank you to Michelle in Illinois for her feedback.

• With Chapter 7 comes the arrival of Eduard Delacroix. What was your first impression of Del? Did you come to like him as the story went on?
• Again, the question about why Percy wanted to work on the Green Mile arose. Have you changed your opinion as to Percy’s motives when the question was asked previously?
• In Chapter 8, Mr. Jingles and Del meet for the first time and took to one another. Why do you suppose the bond between the two of them became so strong?
• Percy offers to help Del get a box for Mr. Jingles and to get some cotton batting from the dispensary, which means Percy seemed to change his attitude. Why is Percy acting this way? Do you think that Percy is biding his time before seeking some kind of revenge?
• In Chapter 9, we see Mr. Jingles roll the spool for the first time, which impresses the others. Were you impressed with Mr. Jingles did this?
• In Chapter 10, William Wharton was first mentioned in detail. We read a bit about him before he actually arrives on E Block. Did you feel that Wharton would eventually come to be big trouble?
• (Please pay special attention to these two points: 1) Paul describes how his urinary tract infection made him feel and 2) Hal reveals Melinda’s brain tumor to Paul. These two conditions are key points in the book and will come up again.
• Chapter 11 deals with the arrival of Wharton. When we first see him, he appears to be doped, but then, he causes a major scene which nearly kills Dean Stanton. It was mentioned that the guards didn’t actually ask if Wharton was doped. Do you think they were a bit careless by just making this assumption?

We now have 14 subscribers! I am pleased that we're getting off the ground, and I look forward to even more subscribers.

Please send comments, answers to discussion questions, other insights, and comments to me.

Please see "Sharon's Favorite Links" for the URL's to the websites of the podcasts I've mentioned on teh show.

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Until next time, stay warm, have a wonderful week, and happy reading. :)

Sharon

Episode 2 - "The Green Mile" Part 1, Chapters 7 & 8 and Part 2, Chapters 1-6 - 2/20/07

"The Green Mile"
Part 1, Chapters 7 & 8 and Part 2, Chapters 1-6
Episode 2 - 2/20/07

In this episode, I shared about a book called "Stephen King Universe" by Stanley Wiater, Christopher Golden, and Hank Wagner. It is a guide to the works of Stephen King and his universe. I am hoping to use this resource in our future discussions.

We received two wonderful e-mails which I read on the show. Thank you to Michelle, and Shawn in Georgia, for their contributions to this episode.

The study questions for this episode are below:

• In Chapter 7, we get our first glimpse of Steamboat Willy, who we come to know as Mr. Jingles. What do you suppose endeared the mouse to the guards on E Block?
• We find out where Mr. Jingles had been staying and how he got into the prison in the first place. Things are revealed that we don’t quite understand until we read farther in the book. Why was this revealed now rather than later after everything was said and done?
• At the end of Part 1, we see that both Paul and Brutal want to be transferred from the Mile to Boys’ Correctional. What do you think caused them to make this decision?

Part 2, “The Mouse on the Mile” Ch. 1-6

• In Chapter 1, we get our first look at Brad Dolan, a man who works in the nursing home where the elderly Paul lives. Paul says Brad reminds him a little of Percy? Do you agree? Why or why not?
• It looks as though Brad never liked Paul from the start. Why do you think he gives Paul a hard time?
• In Chapter 2, Steamboat Willy returned to the Green Mile three days after Percy chased him back into the restraint room. We come to realize that the mouse will only take food from the regulars who work on the mile and refuses food given to him by Bill Dodge, a floater. The mouse appears more intelligent than most other mice. Do you agree?
• Again, we see Percy wanting to do the mouse in when he throws his baton at him. Why do you think Percy hates the mouse so much?
• In Chapter 3, we see the Steamboat Willy comes back the next day after Percy threw the baton at him, even when the others didn’t think he would. Why does the mouse end up coming back?
• We have seen old Toot-toot before, but in Chapter 4, we get more of a taste for his personality. Do you like him? Why or why not?
• In this chapter, we see the rehearsal for Arlen Bitterbuck’s execution. It is obvious that Toot-toot enjoys his role as stand-in and really plays it to the hilt, even making a pretty hilarious crack when he’s asked if he has something to say before sentence is carried out (see page 96 in the hardcover edition). This cracks up the other men but irritates Paul. Why did Paul get so irritated and was he justified in his agitation?

Please check out "Sharon's Favorite Links" to find my podcast recommendations.

I look forward to hearing from you listeners. Please e-mail me any answers to our study questions, any comments about the book or any of Stephen King's books, feedback and insights, and comments about the show. An interactive podcast makes an interesting podcast.

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Have a safe week, stay warm, and happy reading.

Sharon

Episode 1 - "The Green Mile" Part 1, Chapters 1-6

Summary

Off we go! We have started our first book discussion! Covered in this podcast were the first six chaptres in Part 1. You can find the study questions for this entrybelow.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's Day and that y0u were able to do something specal and romantic with your special someone. Unfortunately, we're rather snowed in in my section of th ewoods. We've had some really horrendous weather here over the last couple of days.

We now have 7 subscribers! That is very exciting for me, and I'm looking forward to more. Unfortunately, there was no feedback, but we are brand new, after all, and so sometimes new things start out slowly. However, I'm hoping that this will change and we'll be seeing some contributions.

If you would like to be mentioned on the show, you can do the following:

• Subscribe to the podcast and send me a hello. You can e-mail me here. I'd love to hear from you. Your first name and the state where you're from will be mentioned.
• Answer the study questions and e-mail them to me.
• Send me your insights, opinions, or feedback about the books and the show. Podcasting is a brand new thing for me, so I'm learning as I'm going along. Any comments and feedback would be greatly appreciated.

I do welcome your feedback and your comments. As I said in my introductory episode, I want this podcast to be interactive where the listeners input opinions, answer to study questions, and any other insights so that my opinion isn't the only one voicecd on the show. Please do feel free to e-mail me.

Study questions for the next group of chapters will be posted soon.

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Happy reading, everyone, and I hope to be hearing from you soon.

Sharon

"The Green Mile" Chapters 1-6 Study Questions

"The Green Mile"
Study Questions, Chapters 1-6

1) What is your first impression of Paul Edgecombe?

2) Why do you suppose Paul felt he needed to tell his story?

3) What was your first impression of John Coffey when he was brought to Block E? What was the thing that first struck you most about Coffey?

4) Did you dislike Percy right away? Why do you suppose he wanted to work in the prison?

5) Paul offered John Coffey a handshake, which is something he had never done for a prisoner. Even he said he didn’t know why, perhaps Coffey’s admission about being afraid of the dark. What is your opinion as to why Paul made this gesture toward this particular prisoner?

6) In Chapter 4, Paul goes into detail about the death of the Detterick girls. When you read the account of events, did you think that John Coffey was guilty, or did you feel that there was something more to it than met the eye?

7) Why do you suppose (aside from the obvious where Coffey was found with the girls’ bodies) that everyone just assumed that John Coffey was the one who committed the murder?

8) In Chapter 6, we read that Paul is having a conversation with Warden Hal Moores about Percy. Moores tells Paul to let Percy be an active part of the execution of Eduard Delacroix, and then they could be rid of Percy due to his transference to Briar Ridge. Did you feel a sense of foreboding when you read this scene?

Introductory Episode, February 10, 2007

Summary

In this episode, I introduced the podcast and stated our purpose. We are here to discuss the works of Stephen King, that wonderfully world famous and very thrilling author. Each book will be discussed in its entirety until it is completed, and then we will move on to the next one. IN each session, we'll cover about 5-6 chapters of the book, and study questions will be posted to the website. I am hoping that this cast will be highly interactive and that you, the listeners, will provide lots of feeback.

Some general questions for your consideration:

• Which is your favorite Stephen King book and why?
• Which is your least favorite Stephen King book and why?
• How long have you been reading books by Stephen King?
• How did you come to enjoy Stephen King's books?
• Who is your favorite Stephen King character? Please explain.

In our next episode, we'll move right into discussing "The Green Mile," and study questions will be posted soon. Books will not be picked in any particular order, so if there is a book that you, the listeners, would like to see discussed next up on our list, please e-mail them to me and we'll see what we can do.

I will try to get this podcast out every week.

If you would like to be mentioned on the show, you can do one or all of the following:

• Subscribe to the podcast and send me a hello. You can e-mail me here. I'd love to hear from you. Your first name and the state where you're from will be mentioned.
• Answer the study questions and e-mail them to me.
• Send me your insights, opinions, or feedback about the books and the show. Podcasting is a brand new thing for me, so I'm learning as I'm going along. Any comments and feedback would be greatly appreciated.

I don't claim to be an expert about Stephen King, so if anyone has any fun facts, please e-mail them to me.

You can directly download the mp3 file to this show by clicking this link

Click here to e-mail me.

Until next time, happy reading, everyone.

Sharon

My Podcast Alley feed! {pca-001164a6619968293144a6286d74ecd5}

Introduction to my Podcast

Hello everyone,

This is an introduction to my Stephen King Book Discussion Podcast. I am brand new at this whole thing, but I'm looking forward to getting my first episode on the air soon. My first show will consist of introducing myself and telling why we are here. Our purpose is ot discuss books by the famous and thrilling author, Stephen King. We'll discuss one book until we're finished and then move on to the next one. I'll be covering about 5-6 chapters a week, depending on how long they are (as you know, some of his books are quiet lengthy). My goal is for this podcast to be interactive, with input from you, the listeners. I'll be putitng up a list of study questions for each session, and your answers can be e-mailed to me at sweetnightingaleus@yahoo.com. If you wold like to be mentioned on the show, you can do so by

• Subscribing to the podast and sending me a hello
• Answering the study questions
• Providing some insight of your own about the book

Once the introductory episode is completed, we'll move right into the book discussion with our first real episode. The first book we'll discuss is "The Green Mile," which happens to be one of my favorites. I won't go in any particular order - the next book will be picked randomly. If you, the listenres, would like to request that a particular book is next up on the list, please feel free to e-mail me.

I will try to get the podcast out each week.

Until next time. :)

Happy Reading,

Sharon