Goodbye Days

Carver has numerous flashbacks, dreams, and even imaginary conversations with his dead friends. Explain the significance and function of these moments, choosing a few examples to justify your arguments.

The book’s title, Goodbye Days, is coined by Carver, the writer, but the idea of the “goodbye day” is introduced by Nana Betsy. Explain the significance of the title and of this phrase in general. What does the goodbye day signify in terms of achieving closure?

The book’s author is also a musician, and music and the arts play a major role throughout the book. Sauce Crew met at Nashville Arts Academy, and each member had some sort of creative talent. Why might the author choose to give each of the boys an artistic skill? Consider the impact of the art that each boy left behind (Blake’s YouTube channel, Mars’s graphic novel, Eli’s music or his childhood sand sculpture, etc.).