Gambling
The main place where Kiese spends his time and money
What is a casino?
The person Kiese meets in the casino hotel room for a serious conversation.
Who is his mother?
Kiese's partner’s name.
Who is Flora Wadley?
One emotion that brings Kiese back to the casino.
What is sadness or loneliness?
The machines that make "twinkly promises" to Kiese
What are slot machines?
What Kiese and his mother promise each other not to do anymore.
What is lying?
What Flora says is the main problem in their relationship.
What is the casino?
Another struggle Kiese compares to gambling.
What is his body, weight, or food?
How much money does Kiese take from Flora right after promising to quit gambling?
What is $10?
One thing Kiese's mother criticizes about him during their conversation.
What is his weight/relationships/job?
What Flora suggests they do instead of going to the casino.
What is traveling somewhere fun (or stopping gambling)?
How Kiese feels whether he wins or loses money.
What is emptiness, heaviness, or shame?
The amount of money Kiese and Flora win after their big success at the casino (total)
What is about $12,000?
What Kiese admits he often did instead of telling the truth.
What is lying or hiding the truth?
What Kiese talks about in counseling instead of his real problems.
What is Flora and her problems instead of his own?
What Kiese fears about having children.
What is hurting or failing a child/not protecting them?
What Kiese does after promising Flora he will stop gambling.
What is going back to the casino and gambling again?
How Kiese describes his relationship with his mother at the end of their talk.
What is complicated, loving, painful, or honest (they “turned a page”)?
What Flora makes Kiese promise after he loses all the money.
What is never going back to the casino?
What Kiese wants instead of hiding from the past.
What is honesty, remembering, or facing the past?