Daughter of Fortune, by Isabel Allende

Characters
Chile	California
Eliza Sommers – abandoned at birth and taken in by Sommers family, John’s daughter Rose – wrote erotic novels Jeremy John – sailor Mama Fresia – cook for Sommers family Jacob Todd – came to Chile to sell 300 bibles on a bet Tao Chi’en – Eliza’s friend and sage Lin – wife, deceased Karl Bretzner – Rose’s lover at age 16, opera singer Feliciano Rodriguez de Santa Cruz Paulina – wife Joaquin Andieta – poor intellectual, romanced Eliza	Eliza > impersonating as either a Chinese boy or Elias Andieta, Joaquin’s brother Joaquin Andieta > Joaquin Murieta (Mexican) Jacob Todd > Jacob Freemont – reporter and writer Feliciano Rodriguez de Santa Cruz – 1848-1849 went to California to mine gold > Felix Cross Paulina – wife – started steamship line and delivered fresh food from Chile Tao Chi’en Dr. Ebanizer Hobbs – English Azuncena Placeres – prostitute on ship Joe Bonecrusher - madam Babalu the Bad Four “doves”

For Discussion:

Note: Page number are from the paperback edition.

1. Joaquin repeated with Eliza exactly what disgraced his own mother.  Why did he not see this pattern?
2. Did you like the very frequent foreshadowing?  Some examples are:
1. Page 80: “Many years later, standing before a human head preserved in a jar of gin, Eliza would remember that first meeting with Joaquin…”
2. Page 66: “…many years later, on the other side of the world, he [Tao] could still smell candles.”
3. Page 108: “Later, when for years Eliza would follow Joaquin Andieta’s faint trail…”
4. Page 109: “It would be several years before she [Eliza] began to record her Wednesday rendezvous in those pages.”
3. Were you surprised about the changes in the characters once they arrived in California?  For example, both Jacob Todd and Joaquin Andieta seemed to reinvent themselves.
4. In my book group, many members thought Joaquin Andieta had died and that Joaquin Murieta was a different person.  What do you think?
5. Tao Chi’en seemed to be the only person who stayed the same between Chile and California.  Why?
6. Were you surprised to read that Eliza was John’s daughter?
7. Were you surprised to find out that Rose was writing the erotic novels John was selling?
8. On page 228, what did you think of the characterizations of the different nationalities: “Americans were short on patience: they didn’t know how to work as a team and were defeated by greed and a lack of discipline. Mexicans and Chileans knew about mining, but the squandered their earnings.  Oregonians and Russians wasted time fighting and drinking.  The Chinese, on the other hand, got ahead however poor their beginnings because they were frugal…”
9. Discuss the various characters.   What were the positive and negative characteristics of each?  

*****
First Semester Success: Learning Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Dr. Arden B. Hamer, is available at amazon.com, wordassociation.com and barnesandnoble.com.   Click on the upper right link.

No One Ever Asked, by Katie Ganshert

REVIEW:  This is really an enthralling book and I thoroughly enjoyed the reading experience.  The author expertly met the goal of helping the reader see people from their different perspectives and increasing empathy for those in different situations.   Besides the main issue of race, another important idea I felt the book addressed was the idea that everyone has struggles – no one has the “perfect life” we see on the surface.  The only reason I did not give the book five stars was because its “after life” was not as positive as the reading experience itself.  As I reflected on the book after I had finished, it seemed that there were so many issues (marital difficulties, guns, diabetes, adoption, etc.) that it was overwhelming.  I received a complimentary copy of the book for this review.

Characters
Crystal Ridge Schools	From South Fork School
Camille Gray Neil – husband Children – Taylor, Austin, Paige Kathleen – Camille’s friend Rick – husband Children – Cody, Bennett, Dane Jen Covington – high school nurse Nick – husband Jubilee – adopted daughter, age 7 Branden – Jen’s brother, drug addict Leif Royce Children – Gavin (2nd grade), Derek (high school) Kyle Davis – Anaya’s supervising teacher Juanita Fine	Anaya Jones – second grade teacher at Crystal Ridge and high school girls’ track coach Darius – brother Marcus – boy friend Edison – Austin’s school friend, chess player Tamika Harris – mother

For Discussion:

Note: Because the book I read was an Uncorrected Proof Copy, quotations are referenced with the chapter where they are found.

1. In chapter 9, Anya reflects on a saying of her father, “Good news, bad news.  Who’s to say?”  Do you think this is a true statement?  Were there examples of this saying in the novel?
2. When Camille was thinking about her marriage in chapter 10, she realized that she, “…had taken her marriage for granted, and things taken for granted were all too easily neglected.”  Did you think this was part of the reason why Neil left?  Do you think this is a true statement?
3. How well did you think the author presented the issues involved in combining two very different school districts in terms of race as well as money?  Did she present both sides of the conflict equally well?
4. Discuss Jen and her reaction to motherhood that was so different from what she expected.   Do you think her reactions were realistic?   Was there anything she could have done differently?
5. The author is a white woman and the mother of a black daughter (Author’s Note).  How well do you think she addressed the difficulties Jen faced raising Jubilee?
6. This book tackled very serious and controversial issues in our society.  One was the use of the “N” word.  In chapters 32 and 34 the characters discussed two different uses of that word, one as an extreme insult and one as a sign of solidarity.  What did you think about this? 
7. Also in the “Author’s Note” she wrote about the power of a story.  Through a story, “We get to put on someone else’s skin and walk a mile in their shoes, which makes it the best possible breeding ground for empathy.”  Do you agree?  Can you think of a book that helped you understand someone else?  Did this book fulfill that goal?
8. In chapter 34, Paige was asking Camille if she liked people with brown skin and Camille replied, “I don’t care about skin color.  It’s what’s in a person’s heart that matters.”  She then told Paige that the controversy with combining the two school districts had nothing to do with color.  Do you think Camille believed what she was saying?   Did she change her mind throughout the course of the novel?
9. In chapter 56, Jen realized that she always thought Camille’s life was perfect, but then she came to understand that everyone had struggles in life.  Why was this an important realization for her?  Do you think this is magnified in our world today with Facebook and other ways we share our lives?
10. Discuss Camille, Jen and Anaya.  Were their lives and challenges realistically portrayed?  Were you able to emphasize with them?
11. What purpose did the character Juanita Fine play in the novel?
12. Discuss your reading experience both as you were reading and after you had finished the book.

*****
First Semester Success: Learning Strategies for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Dr. Arden B. Hamer, is available at amazon.com, wordassociation.com and barnesandnoble.com.   Click on the upper right link.