1. This was an enlightened young man who would seem to have benefited by early intervention counseling. Why do you think he didn't seek the special attention such counseling would have offered once he actually was in New York on his own?

2. Why do you think Michahaze stayed with Jamie after everything he put him through?

3. Do you think any of the blame of Jamie’s drinking lies with Mama Jean? Do you think Jamie is to blame for his drinking or do you believe it is a disease?

4. Jamie makes the claim that he could not understand Mama Jean’s pronouncement, “You don’t know what love is,” nor her all-consuming love until after he got sober from 20 years of “drinking a silo booze,” and that ultimately that love saved him. Do you agree? Do you think her love was more harmful or helpful to him?

5. Voice is crucial to any book --- fiction or nonfiction --- in the telling of a story. Do you feel that Jamie has a strong voice and did his irrepressible humor help you get through some of the darkest parts of the book?

6. Given that DWW is a recovery memoir told through the lens of Jamie’s relationship with Mama Jean, how would you compare it to other memoirs of alcoholism and addiction?

7. If you have or have had substance abuse problems, was Jamie’s story one with which you could identify, even his circumstances were different? Would you recommend DWW to people who are suffering from or affected by alcoholism and addiction?

8. Mama Jean’s decline and death from Lewy Body Dementia is a salient part of the book. How would you compare it to other memoirs that cover dementia and would you recommend DWW to anyone coping with a family member’s dementia?

9. What lessons can mothers take away from DWW? What lessons can sons take away?

10. Jamie reveals many incredibly personal secrets in DWW, including his HIV status, which he never told Mama Jean. Even though HIV is a manageable disease, do you think it is still stigmatized and should more HIV-postive people “come out” to relieve that stigma?