Book Club Discussion Questions and Guide for The Lager Queen of Minnesota by J. Ryan Stradal

1. The decision made by Helen and Edith's father to leave the family farm entirely to Helen changes each sister's life forever. Although she's the beneficiary of that unfair decision, do you believe that Helen is a sympathetic character?
2. Before Diana was hired full-time at Heartlander Brewery, she was stealing from garages to help make ends meet. Did this criminal behavior affect how you felt about Diana as a character? If not, how was she able to redeem herself, and what contributed to her evolution?
3. Both of Stradal's novels, The Lager Queen of Minnesota and Kitchens of the Great Midwest, are full of characters who've developed special, intimate relationships with food and drink. How would you describe Helen's lifelong relationship with beer? How is it different from Diana's? Or Edith's?
4. The topic of loss appears throughout the book in both significant and subtle ways. The characters are often reckoning with their grief. Were there specific situations you found particularly relatable? Explain.
5. It's becoming increasingly common in America for people, especially women, to work past retirement age, as Edith and some of her friends are doing. How would you describe Edith's experience of working into her late seventies, and how does it contrast with that of the people you know who've continued to work late in life?
6. Although beer was invented by women, commercial brewing has been dominated by men. What does this book have to say about women in the industry, and the potential of women in the industry?
7. Each character's attitude toward beer evolves during the course of the novel. Did this book change your own opinion of beer?
8. Edith's talent for baking pies was a local secret for decades before she was "discovered." In your opinion, was her wider exposure a positive development in her life? Do you know anyone with a similar skill or talent, and how do you think they'd feel about receiving a similar kind of wider exposure?

Unless otherwise stated, this discussion guide is reprinted with the permission of Pamela Dorman Books. Any page references refer to a USA edition of the book, usually the trade paperback version, and may vary in other editions.