Shades of Simon Gray Written by Joyce McDonald Juvenile Fiction - Historical - United States - 20th Century Laurel Leaf Paperback January 2003 $5.99 978-0-440-22804-2 (0-440- 22804-2) ABOUT THIS GUIDE About the Novels of Joyce McDonald Joyce McDonald is a new and powerful voice in thriller fiction for teenagers. Like Lois Duncan s protagonists, McDonald s teenage characters stumble into dangerous territory, and along the way must make moral and ethical decisions that will fundamentally affect their future. Whether it s computer crime, a stray gunshot, arson, or an accidental murder, McDonald promises her readers a gripping story. Her characters might be recognizable from the nightly news or the front pages of local newspapers, but the consequences they suffer turn their misdeeds into a reality check for teen readers and force them to think about the serious outcomes of teenage crime in the United States. Pre-Reading Activity Ask the group to look in the newspaper or news magazines and find articles about computer crimes in our nation. How might such crimes be considered white-collar crimes? Outline rights and responsibilities that schools should teach students regarding computer technology. Questions for Discussion 1. Joyce McDonald describes the town of Bellehaven as a beautiful bucolic spot:... Victorian homes nestled between ancient oaks and maples... the very sight of it could take your breath away especially in the spring when all of Edgewood Avenue was shimmering with crabapple blossoms. Yet the town has a very dark history. What is its secret, and how is the town being punished for it now? 2. The main characters in Shades of Simon Gray are Simon Gray, Devin McCafferty, Kyle Byrnes, Danny Giannetti, and Liz Shapiro.
Discuss each of the characters and their relationships. Who among the people you know are like any of them? 3. Danny Giannetti believes You don t have to play the game, you just have to know how to win it. Kyle Byrnes lives by the creed Do anything you want, the trick is make sure no one ever finds out and if they do... lie like hell. Even Liz Shapiro, who believes she is an honest person, secretly removes an antique journal from the historical society to work on a report. She rationalizes: They would never miss it. She would return it in a few days and no one would ever be the wiser. What do you think influenced these kids to formulate philosophies that allow them to comfortably behave so dishonestly? 4. A 2002 study of 4500 high school students across the country by Rutgers University s Management Education Center found that 75 percent of the students surveyed engaged in serious cheating. Common student responses were: I actually think cheating is good. A person who has an honest life can t succeed. How is this survey relevant to Shades of Simon Gray? How do you and your classmates feel about cheating? How does the larger world of politics, business, and media affect your attitudes? Be honest! 5.Shades of Simon Gray raises questions of ethics and ethical behavior. What ethical dilemmas do you face outside school? Do your friends influence the choices you make? Would you do something unethical to please them? 6. Of all the conspirators, Devin is the only one who rejects the rewards she receives as a result of the project. What is the turning point for her? Does your opinion of Devin change by the end of the novel? 7. Before Simon s accident, what clues indicate that he might have crashed the car on purpose? 8. The way Simon was beginning to see it was, there were two ways out of this place: you either pulled yourself up or you let them hang you. Simon knows he has a choice. The visions or out-of-body experiences he has while in a coma help him come to a decision. How do his encounters with Jessup Wildemere help him make his choice?
9. He found himself outside his room, near the nurses station, where two doctors were talking. He tried waving his hands over his head to get their attention, but the doctors never so much as glanced his way. Within seconds Simon s ears filled with a strange whooshing sound. He felt himself propelled like smoke through the stem of a pipe, right into his body. The belief that critically ill patients can have out-of-body experiences is a very controversial one. Where do you stand on the issue? Do you believe Simon s experiences are real? Propose an alternative explanation. 10. Shades of Simon Gray demonstrates that normally honest, lawabiding citizens can be manipulated and corrupted into committing illegal acts, whether in 1798 or in the present. What was it about the people of Havenhill that allowed them to hang a man without a trial and then lie about it? Does it make any difference that they were ignorant of the truth? Simon knew he was being manipulated by Kyle, Devin, and Danny, yet he still chose to get involved in the project. What was Simon s sin? 11. When they need quiet time and a place for serious thinking, the characters in Shades of Simon Gray find their way down to the river. What is it about a river that makes it conducive to thinking? Talk about where you go to be alone to think. 12. Joyce McDonald often takes advantage of the multiple meanings of words she uses for example, the expression a murder of crows and the words shades of gray in the title. Talk about the author s use of language and how it helps to set a tone and to give richness to the novel. This guide was prepared by Clifford Wohl, educational consultant. FOR DISCUSSION 1. Discuss the significance of the prologue in the novel. How does the parallel story about Jessup Wildemere round out Simon Gray s story? 2. Debate the differences between a horror, a mystery, and a ghost story. How does this novel fit all three genres? Discuss whether the crows and the frogs make the novel more suspenseful. Explain the
purpose of the chapters where the reader is taken inside Simon s mind while he is in a coma. 3. Analyze each teenage character in the novel. Discuss how Simon Gray changes when Kyle and his friends take over his life. Why do you think Simon agrees to help the seniors cheat? Discuss how Simon might be a victim of peer pressure. How do the teens rationalize their cheating? Contrast Devin s remorse to Kyle s behavior at the end of the novel. 4. Why is Simon Gray considered both a likely and unlikely suspect in the computer crime at Bellehaven High School? It is quite common for schools to cover up criminal acts in an effort to avoid unwanted publicity. Discuss why the school involves law enforcement in the suspected hacking from the very beginning. What evidence is there that the principal may indeed suspect George McCabe, the school s Systems Administrator, of some type of unethical or unlawful behavior? 5. Simon wants to play one of the ghosts in the school s production of Macbeth because he says, I d rather be the one doing the haunting. (p. 154) Though he doesn t get the part, how does Simon haunt the teens involved in the Project? At what point does Simon realize that he was searching for a way out the night of the accident? Why is he so furious with Jessup for being stupid? He tells him, This was your life. (p. 219) Debate whether Simon sees himself in Jessup s situation. 6. The police don t find what they are looking for on Simon s computer, but they do find an interesting poem, and a letter. Explain the poem Bat Wings. What does this reveal about Simon? To whom is the letter written? What is the only thing Simon has to gain from the Project? 7. Using someone s password is considered unethical behavior, but it isn t a crime. Discuss why it is important to protect a personal password. At what point could using someone else s password become a crime? The FBI is using technology to track criminal behavior in our nation. What privacy issues are involved? Why is it important to understand these issues? Prepared by Pat Scales, Director of Library Services, the South Carolina Governor s School for the Arts and Humanities, Greenville.