My Name is Emilia del Valle, by Isabel Allende

 

Characters
Emilia del Valle Molly Walsh – former nun Francisco Clara “Papo” – stepfather, raised Emilia Three younger brothers   Brandon J. Price – Emilia’s pen name   Gonzalo Andres del Valle – biological father   The Daily Examiner – newspaper Mr. Chamberlain – editor-in-chief Eric Whelan – reporter   Owen Whelan – Eric’s brother in New York City   Josefa Paolmar – neighborhood gossip	Real people
	Victoria Woodhull – First woman to run for president   Cora Hatch – spiritualist   Omene – exotic dancer
Chile
Gonzalo Andres del Valle – Emilia’s biological father Nina Juanita – land given to Emila by her father   Pauline del Valle – Gonzalo’s aunt, made family fortune Fredrick Williams – husband   Rodolfo Leon – journalist, founded newspaper for government   War in Chile: General Barbosa – leader of government armed forces, supported by US (Emilia reported on this side) Rebels, insurgents – England supported this group, victorious (Eric reported on this side)   Canteen girls Angelita Ayalef – died   Captain Janus – Nina Juanita captain, helped Emilia get to land she inherited   Ailen – new name given to Emilia by natives after she almost died, means luminous and transparent

 

NOTE: Page numbers are from the 2025 hardback edition.

1.      Before she became a journalist, Emilia successfully wrote dime novels.  How did this influence her work as a columnist?

2.      Eric was a journalist, and Emila was a columnist.  Mr. Chamberlain defined journalism as “based in concrete facts and aimed to objectively inform the public” while a columnist “could be more subjective, providing an interpretation of the events” (page 41).  Have you ever thought about the difference?   

3.      After Emilia had worked for The Examiner for a while, she convinced Mr. Chamberlain to let her do a travel column, crossing the country to New York.  She went there first class, but came home third class, which was very uncomforable.   She said that “the endless days of discomfort allowed each person’s true character to shine through” (page 58).   How well do you think you would handle the discomforts of traveling third class in that time period?  Do we have anything comparable now?

4.      In Chile Eric reported on the rebel forces and Emilia on the government faction.  Were you surprised Emilia was arrested because of who she reported on?   Could she have avoided being arrested?

5.      When you read on page 226 about Emilia and the firing squad, what did you think the rest of the novel would be about?  Where you surprised to read what really happened on page 231?

6.      On her way to find the land from her father, Emilia was overwhelmed by the beauty of the land.  Have you felt those same emotions? 

7.      All through her experiences, Emilia kept notebooks and wrote down everything she experienced.  In talking with Captain Janus, he said “remembering was important, that one had to look to the past to be able to understand the present and face the future” (page 259).  Is that true with you?  Is that true in the larger sense – for a country or a civilization?

8.      How important was the war to the storyline?

9.      The novel was set in the 1870s.  Do you think there are still remote places like Emilia’s property today?  Would you go there?   

10.  Were there any parts of the book you think could have been left out?

11.  After reading the last line, did you think back differently about the novel you just finished? 

Magpie Murders, by Anthony Horowitz

 

Characters
Magpie Murders	Cloverleaf Books
Pye Hall – Saxby-on-Avon Sir Magnus Pye Frances – wife Freddy – son Jack Dartford – affair with Frances   Clarissa Pye – sister, really born first   Mary Blakiston – housekeeper, died falling down steps Matthew – husband, separated Robert – son Tom - younger brother drowned while playing with Robert, parents blamed each other Bella - killed Joy Sanderling – Robert’s girlfriend, works for Dr. Redwing   Brent – groundskeeper, Pye Hall   Reverand Robin Osborne Henrietta - wife   Dr. Emilia Redwing Arthur – husband, painter Sebastian – son, not in touch Dr. Edgar Rennard – delivered Pye twins   Johnny and Gemma Whitehead – antique shop   Atticus Pund – private detective James Fraser – secretary and assistant   Dingle Dell – woodland, Magnus Pye might be sold for new development   Raymond Chubb – police detective	Charles Clover – owner Elaine – wife Jemima – secretary Bella - dog   Alan Conway – author James Taylor – partner, James Fraser modeled after him Melissa – ex wife The Slide – unpublished book   Donald Leigh – waiter who dropped plates, Alan stole his book idea   Susan Ryeland – Head of Fiction Andreas - boyfriend

 

NOTE: Page numbers are from the 2017 hardback edition.

1.      Did you like how Susan Ryeland organized the characters and clues on pages 6 – 11?  Did you pick up on all the clues she listed?

2.      Mary Blakiston kept a diary of the faults of everyone in the village.   Have you ever met someone who collected “bad” things about other people and enjoyed it?  (No names!!)  Why do you think she did that and why did it bring her pleasure?

3.      Did you like all of the references to other books, TV shows, and movies such as “Midsomer Murders?”  Horowitz wrote some of the scripts for that movie.

4.      Matthew Prichard (pages 92 – 96) is a real person and is the only grandchild of Agatha Christie.  Did you pick up on any of the hidden references to Agatha Christie?

5.      “Why is it that we have such a need for murder mystery and what is it that attracts us – the crime or the solution?” (page 70).

6.      Susan Ryeland thought, “Whodunnits are all about truth: nothing more, nothing less.  In a world full of uncertainties, is it not inherently satisfying to come to the last page with every i dotted and every t crossed?” (page 183).  Do you think this is a reason for their popularity?

7.      Conway did not like his main character, Atticus Pund, and in fact planned the clue in the book titles as well as the anagram of his name (Atticus Pund = a stupid c---) from the very beginning.  He said that many authors grew to hate their main characters, including Agatha Christie and Poirot.  If this is true, how do you think they coped to continue writing?

8.      Were you surprised at the solutions to both the crime in Magpie Murders and the one in the publishing part of the book?  Did you guess them ahead of time?

9.      Did you read the story straight through or skip to the end to finish the novel?

10. Did you like the novel and the way it was organized?  Why or why not?