Reading Group Guide

Questions for Discussion

1. Smitty is called “The Alien” by others at school, but is he really the only alien in this book? Does the title The Only Alien on the Planet suit the book? What does the title mean?
2. Have you ever been “the new kid” in any situation? Does this story connect with your own experience? How can being new help you to see a situation differently from those who are closer to it? How can being new in a situation help you to see yourself differently?
3. Describe Caulder's character. Do you like him at first? Does your opinion of Caulder change as you learn more about his character? Why or why not?
4. Discuss the friendship between Ginny and Caulder. What is good about it? What flaws (if any) does their friendship have?
5. Both Ginny's and Caulder's families have some common strengths. What are they? Discuss the relationship between Smitty's mother and father. How are Ginny's and Caulder's families different from Smitty's?
6. What initially draws Ginny to Smitty? What keeps her interested in the situation? Why does she feel so connected to Smitty's situation?
7. Why and how do communities define the parameters of what is normal? There may be very good reasons for it, and very bad ones. Some norms have been proven over thousands of years of human experience, while other norms may simply be the result of strong personalities' fear of losing a grip on social power. Can some norms be true, but abused? When is it helpful to be different?
8. How does Ginny see Smitty at first? Why is she afraid of him? Is it really Smitty she's afraid of, or does her fear run more deeply? How does she lose her fear of him (if she truly ever does)?
9. How do you think the way Ginny sees Smitty changes after the breakthrough? Does Caulder's view of Smitty change through these events? How?
10. Consider Ginny's feelings after the note is read in front of the class. Have you ever felt something like it? How did you feel? How did you wish the people who had witnessed your embarrassment would act around you? Have you ever witnessed another person's humiliation? How did you treat that person afterward? How long did you remember that event, and did you refer to it in front of other people later?
11. How can Caulder feel so confident, and still not understand Smitty's situation as well as he might think? Does Ginny actually understand Smitty better than Caulder does?
12. Ginny and Caulder spend Friday nights going to see classic films. Have you seen the movies mentioned in the book? Why are these particular movies significant?
13. Were Caulder and Ginny right to take Smitty to the films? Did they have the right to push him socially? Did they truly care about him? Or were they playing a game? How aware of them do you believe Smitty was throughout the first part of the book?
14. Ginny and Caulder decide to help Smitty become “normal.” Do you think they made the right decision? Can kids in high school achieve the wisdom it takes to live well and safely? Do they have the discipline? Give examples from your own life of both the really good and the really stupid choices you made in high school. How much do kids who are in high school still need their parents? Should there be any shame in a kid asking a parent for advice?
15. Ginny has a very close relationship with her brothers. How do they lend her strength? How would things have turned out if Ginny's older brother Paul had been home instead of away at college?
16. Smitty has no experience in human interaction. Think about how much goes into your everyday interaction with friends and family. Notice the unspoken language around you. Notice how much direct eye contact—or avoidance of it—can actually say. What ways can you communicate with friends or family without saying a word?
17. Discuss the romantic elements of the story. Do you think the relationship that begins between Ginny and Michael is natural? When Ginny sees Caulder holding hands with Hally, how does she feel? Have you ever felt that way? How does Ginny feel when Peter comes up to talk to her? Why does she leave him? What does that say about her feelings concerning him? What does she mean about unrequited love? Do you think she's right? Should love be fun all the time?
18. Ginny tells Michael that he should not have put up with Russell's treatment. What do you think about that? How easy would it be to stand up to someone who terrifies you?
19. Michael does not tell anyone about his brother's abuse because he is terrified of what might happen. If you are hiding pain caused by a person in your life, what should you do about it? Should you protect or defend a friend or family member if that person has done something wrong, and you know they have done it? Who can you call for advice? How much courage would it take to act?
20. As you read this book, you may have felt a physical response to certain scenes. Think about the scenes that you felt were very real, and read them again. What is it about the particular words in these sections that made you “feel” the scenes? What did the author do with the language?
21. Michael creates an emotionless world for himself to live in. But is it really possible to have ultimate safety from your emotions? What would the world be like if there were no emotional highs and lows—or no emotions at all?