The narrator of Make Lemonade is 14-year-old LaVaughn, but the book is dedicated “for young mothers” like Jolly. Of these two characters, which one do you think is the main character of the novel, and why?

At the beginning of Make Lemonade, LaVaughn takes a job babysitting for Jolly, even though it will likely compromise her studies. What are LaVaughn’s reasons for accepting the position? How do her conflicting desires to connect with Jolly and excel in school affect her throughout the novel?

When LaVaughn first meets Jolly, she is immediately struck by her filthy apartment, and she continues to emphasize the mess throughout the novel. How does this mess, and the changes that occur to it over the course of the book, reflect Jolly’s overall circumstances? Wy do you think Jolly is at times incapable of cleaning up?