The Dictionary of Lost Words, Pip Williams

 

Characters/People

Esme Nicoll Da – father  Lily – mother, deceased   Edith Thompson “Ditte” – godmother Elizabeth “Beth” – sister, A Dragoon’s Wife, 1907   Mrs. Murray 11 children   Mrs. Ballard – cook Lizzie – servant   Mabel O’Shaughnessy – market stall   Tilda Taylor – actress, suffragette Bill – brother Little Billy Bunting – Bill’s son   Phillip Brooks Sarah – wife Megan – Esme’s daughter, adopted by Phillip and Sarah   Cauldshields School – 1987 to 1898   Cobbler’s Dingle Mr. Lloyd Natasha – wife, became Lizzie’s friend Tommy – son   Radcliffe Infirmary Angus Private Albert Northrop “Bertie”   Esperanto - “world’s most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language” (Wikipedia)

Scriptorium Dr. James Murray, editor Da – Mr. Harry Nicoll Mr. Mitchell – two colors of socks Mr. Maling Mr. Balk Mr. Fred Sweatman Mr. Dankworth – unauthorized corrections Mr. Crane – fired, too many errors Mr. Yockney Mr. Rawlings – took Da’s place Murray daughters: Elsie, Rosfrith   Oxford University Press Mr. Hart – “Hart’s Rules,” In charge of printing dictionary Gareth Owen – compositor   Old Ashmolean – Dictionary Room – August 1901 Mr. Bradley – second editor Mr. Craigie – third editor Eleanor Bradley   Bodleian Library Mr. Nicholson Mr. Madden – Nicholson’s successor

 

 

 

 

For Discussion:

NOTE: Page numbers are from paperback edition.

1.       Did reading this book make you think about words differently?

a.       Page 89 – words only included in dictionary “if someone great had written them down.”

b.       Page 127 – words “change as they are passed from mouth to mouth; their meanings stretch or truncate to fit what needs to be said.”

c.       Page 129 – “A vulgar word, well placed and said with just enough vigour, can express far more that its polite equivalent.”

d.       Page 181 – regarding swear words, “They are like bullets, full of energy, and when you give one breath you can feel its sharp edge against your lip.  It can be quite cathartic in the right context.”

2.       Which characters did you particularly like, or dislike?  How well did the author bring them to life?

3.       When Lizzie met Natasha at Cobbler’s Dingle, that was the first friend she ever had.  How did that friendship add to her life?

4.       Discuss Lizzie and Mabel O’Shaughnessy.  Lizzie told Esme, “Nothing I ever said has been written down” (page 103).  How did it make them feel when Esme wrote down what they said?  Also, Lizzie said she did needlepoint because “it proves I exist…Everything I do gets eaten, dirtied or burned – at the end of the day there’s no proof I’ve been here at all” (page 33).  Do you think someone could have those feelings today?

5.       What did you think about Esme’s time working in the hospital with Bertie and the use of Esperanto? 

6.       When Esme thinks about her daughter, the words “Her” and “She” are capitalized.  What did that signify?

7.       At the end of the book, Esme and Lizzie took Women’s Words and Their Meanings to show Mr. Madden at the Bodleian Library.  Even in 1915 he told her the book was “of no scholarly importance” (page 338).  Esme replied, “It fills a gap in knowledge, and surely that is the purpose of scholarship” (page 338).  Were you surprised that nothing had changed since 1887?

8.       What did you learn from this book about the evolution of women’s roles in the early 1900’s?  How important was the inclusion of women’s suffrage to the story of the dictionary?

9.       How does the way people speak and the words they use influence how you regard them?

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, by Ken Kesey

 

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, by Ken Kesey (published 1962)

·       Time Magazine – 100 Best English Language novels 1923 – 2005

·       BBC – 200 best-loved novels in the UK’s in 2003 poll

·       One of America’ most challenged and banned novels

Characters
Patients	Staff
Acutes – able to be fixed R. P. McMurphy – newest Cheswick Billy Bibbit Martini Harding (graduated college, Pres Patient Council) Maxwell Taber Fredrickson   Chronics – no fixing Chief Bromden – narrator Colonel Matterson George Pete Bacini Scanlon Harding Sefelt Ellis Ruckly Old Blastic   Vera – Harding’s wife	Nurse Ratched   Dr. Spivey   Therapeutic Community – get along in the group to learn how to get along back in the community   Three black boys in white suits McGeever Sam Washington   Nurse Pilbon – birthmark, night nurse   Nurse Flinn   Mr. Turkle – night aide   Young residents   “Public Relations”   Billy Bibbit’s mother – receptionist, friend of Nurse Ratched

 

For Discussion:

NOTE: Page numbers are from the 2016 Berkley premium edition (paperback).

1.       Were you surprised to read that many of the patients were there voluntarily, for example Harding, Billy, Sefelt, and Fredrickson?

2.       The narrator, Chief Bromden, pretended to be deaf and dumb for years until McMurphy came.  He was hesitant to sign up for McMurphy’s fishing trip because that would let everyone, including the staff, know he had heard all the things said around him for years when people thought he could not hear and would not tell!  How would people knowing he could hear and talk change how they treated him?

 

3.       Bromden related that “people first took to acting like I couldn’t hear or talk a long time before that” (page 210).  This treatment started as early as elementary school and continued through when he was in the Army.  He said, “That was the way they figured you were supposed to act around someone looked like I did” (page 210).  How does the way we look influence how people treat us?

4.       Bromden’s father told him, “people will force you one way or the other, into doing what they think you should do, or into just being mule-stubborn and doing the opposite out of spite” (page 210).  Why did Bromden act the way people expected of him?  How did knowing McMurphy change him?

5.       McMurphy’s final act was to physically attack Nurse Ratched.  Could he have done anything else?  Bromden thought the group could not stop him “because we were the ones making him do it…It was us that had been making him go on for weeks” (page 318).

6.       As you were reading the novel, what did you think about Nurse Ratched?  Was she basically well-intentioned, misinformed of sound medical practices, or just evil?

7.       Was Nurse Ratched justified in what she did to McMurphy at the end of the novel?

8.       The plan at the end of the novel was for McMurphy to escape, but he fell asleep with the girl and never got away.  How do you think he would have made out if his escape plan had worked?

9.       What did you think about the last three pages – Bromden kills McMurphy and then runs away?   Do you think McMurphy would approve of what he did?

10.   Is there a deeper meaning to the book than just the surface story?

11.   Why does this novel elicit such a wide range of feelings in people – from being one of the best and best-loved novels to being banned and challenged?

The Reading List, by Sara Nisha Adams

 

The Reading List, by Sara Nisha Adams

Characters
Aleisha – working at library Aiden – dropped out of school to care for mother Leilah – mother, ill Dean – father, new life and family   Zac Lowe – law student, guy on train   Mia – Aleisha’s friend   Mukesh Naina – wife, deceased Rohini, Deepali, Vritti – daughters Priya, Jaya and Jayesh – grandchildren   Nilakshi – Naina’s best friend, lost both husband and son in accident   Harish – Mukesh’s friend Meena – wife   Nasseem – neighbor Noor - daughter   Harrow Road Library Aleisha Dev “Thermos Flask Dev” – manager Kyle Benny Chris “Crime Thriller Guy” Lucy - volunteer	Found or given reading list
	Aleisha – found list in copy of To Kill a Mockingbird returned by “Crime Thriller Guy,” shared titles with Mukesh   Chris – found list on library table under a copy of To Kill a Mockingbird with a note Melanie – girlfriend, relationship ended   Indira Patel – found list in shoe space at the mandir   Lenora – found list on board at yoga studio Helena – sister   Izzy – found list on street, collects lists   Joseph – given list by library patron, bullied   Gigi – found list in supermarket

 

For Discussion:

NOTE: Page numbers are from hardback edition.

1.       As you were reading, who do you think wrote the list?

2.       When Mukesh went to the charity walk, he carried a copy of Rebecca with him. He thought about how Naina “used to carry a book with her wherever she was, in case she got stuck in a lift on her own…” (page 126).  Did you relate to this idea?

3.       Izzy collected lists and made-up stories about the people who wrote them.  Do you make lists?  If someone found one of your lists, what would it tell them about you?

 

4.       Discuss Mukesh’s friendship and relationship with Nilakshi, Naina’s best friend.   Were you surprised at his daughters’ reactions?

5.       The novel dealt with many serious issues (grief, loneliness, caring for a sick parent, suicide, bullying) in addition to the positive power of reading.  Did you find the book sad or uplifting, or both?

6.       Could anything have been done to help Aidan?  Would adding him to the book list recipients have helped?

7.       How did the books on the list help the different people who found it?

8.       At least both Mukesh and Aleisha saw or imagined the characters from the various books during their regular days.   Has this ever happened to you?

9.       Is there a book that you have read several times during your life?  Did it mean different things to you at different ages?

10.   Which books have you read from the list?  Did you think they were powerful enough to be included on the list?  Are there any others you would recommend?

The Sentence, Louise Erdrich

 

Characters
Bookstore	Others
Louise – owner, author   Tookie   Jackie Kettle – former 7th grade teacher, sent Tookie books in jail   Flora – customer, ghost haunting store   Penstemom Brown “Pen” – clerk, artist, writer   Asema – clerk   Gruen – part-time, German student    Roland Waring “Dissatisfaction” – customer, never satisfied Gary - dog	Pollux – Tookie’s husband, former tribal police Hetta – Pollux’s niece Jarvis – Hetta’s baby   Laurent – Jarvis’ father, a rugaraoo, “a wolf person who keeps coming back to life and who returns to certain places” (page 160)   Kateri Tekakwitha – Flora’s foster daughter   Danae Mara Budgie – deceased, drugs taped to body

 

For Discussion:

NOTE: Page numbers are from the hardback edition.

1.       What did you think of the first paragraph?   Given that “sentence” is in the title and has various meanings throughout the novel, was it a good introduction?

2.       The word “sentence” is significant for a variety of reasons.  Did this add to your understanding and enjoyment of the novel?

a.       The opening quote, “From the time of birth to the time of death, every word you utter is part of one long sentence,” Sun Yung Shin, Unbearable Splendor

b.       Tookie’s prison sentence

c.       “What I am trying to say is that a certain sentence of the book – a written sentence, a very powerful sentence – killed Flora” (page 161)

d.       “I wish I could write a sentence like that” (page 161).  Said by Louise.

3.       On page 4, Tookie tells the reader that she now “only sells words” and then states, “Books contain everything worth knowing except what ultimately matters.” This sentence is repeated on page 381 at the list of books the author recommends.  Why did the author write that and what does she mean?

4.       Discuss the character of Flora.  She was described as “an Indian wannabe” (page 36), “nice, good-natured, not just friendly, but ready to help” (page 37), and looking “younger, remarkably younger, in spite of the long refrigeration” (page 163).   Her daughter, Kateri, thought she and Tookie were best friends (page 101).  Why did she annoy Tookie so much?

5.       What did you think about Flora’s book, The Sentence, An Indian Captivity, 1862-1883?   It was handwritten in a notebook and could not be burned or cut with an ax.

6.       One bookstore customer was nicknamed “Dissatisfaction” and was one of Tookie’s favorite customers.  He was described as a “Tantalus, whose literary hunger perpetually gnaws but can never be satiated” (pages 97-98).  He hated happy endings but would not “quit even though he may come to hate it” (page 99).  Could you relate?

7.       Discuss Tookie and Hetta’s relationship.  Tookie could not help herself from worrying and asking question.  Was she acting like a typical mom?

8.       Why didn’t Tookie want to know her real name?  Pollux knew it but would not say it.

9.       How well did the author address the common feelings at the beginning of COVID in the section “February 2020” starting on page 147 and then throughout the remainder of the book?

10.   There were multiple references to reading and books.  Did you enjoy or relate to them?

a.       “Books aren’t meant to be safe.  Sadly, or heroically, depending on the way you look at it, books do kill people” (page 161).

b.       Tookie had two stacks of books she is reading, “a Lazy Stack and a Hard Stack” (page 73). 

c.       Tookie wanted the writing in her books to have “a certain mineral density.  It had to feel naturally meant, but not cynically contrived” (page 164) and she was annoyed to authors who used “winking cliff-hangers” (page 164). 

d.       Trends in book titles on page 142: “girl” or “bone” in the title for example

11.   The book addressed several current issues: sentencing disparities in general and in Native Americans and women, George Floyd, COVID.   Were all of these needed?  How did they move the story along?

12.   Did the way the author approached these situations feel true to you?  Did you gain any new insights?

13.   Do you think future readers, a generation from now, will have an accurate understanding of these events after reading this book?

14.   Did you find the resolution of the ghost story satisfying?  Did you suspect the connection between Flora and Tookie?

15.   How many of the books and authors mentioned in the novel have you read?  Did you think they were worthy of being included?  What do you think was the author’s criteria for selecting the books to include in the narrative as well as the lists in the back of the book?

The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald

 

Characters

Nick Carraway   Tom and Daisy Buchanan Pam – daughter   Jay Gatsby “James Gatz”   Henry C. Gatz – Gatsby’s father   Jordan Baker – golfer   Myrtle Wilson George – husband Catherine – sister   Meyer Wolfshiem – gambler, bootlegger   Walter Chase – Tom’s friend, partnered with Gatsby and Wolfshiem   Dan Cody – employed Gatsby as a teenager   Michaelis – witness to accident, owned coffee shop next to Wilsons   Doctor T. J. Eckleburg – billboard near Wilson’s store

 

For Discussion:

1.       Why does Gatsby call everyone “old sport?”

2.       Why didn’t anyone come to Gatsby’s funeral?

3.       What did you think of the various characters: Gatsby, Daisy, Tom, Jordan, and Nick?   Were you able to relate to any of them?

4.       Do you think Daisy loved Gatsby?

5.       At Gatsby’s funeral, his father brought a book his son had read when he was a boy in 1906.   Inside the back cover Gatsby had outlined a plan for self-improvement including his daily schedule, what he would read, how he would save his money, etc.  (Chapter Nine).  Was this a good plan?   Do you think the plan succeeded?

6.       When Tom told Wilson who owned the car, do you think he knew Daisy was driving?  Did he suspect what Wilson would do?

7.       What was the point of the billboard in the story? After Myrtle had been killed, George looked out the window at the billboard and told Michaelis, “God sees everything” (Chapter Eight).

8.       In the end, Gatsby achieves the American Dream (success evidenced by great wealth) but is very unhappy.  Is this a positive or negative aspect of the book?

9.       According to the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom (www.ala.org/advocacy) The Great Gatsby is one of the top 100 novels of the 20^th century that have been banned or challenged, mostly because of language and sexual references. Do you think this is a valid criticism?  How do you think this novel would be understood by a high school student today?

10.   In the first chapter, Tom is telling Daisy and Jordan about a book he is reading that promotes white supremacy.  This was not mentioned in many of the reasons why the book was challenged.  Do you think that would change in today’s atmosphere?

11.   This novel was written in 1925 and is considered a classic.  Is it relevant today?  Why?

 

The Personal Librarian, by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray

 

People
Belle’s family	Others
Belle de Costa Greene/Belle Marion Greener Genevieve – mother Richard Greener – father, first colored Harvard graduate, former president of the University of South Carolina and former dean of Harvard School of Law Russell – engineer Louise – teacher Ethel – teacher Theodora “Teddy” – 7 years younger than Belle   Grandma Fleet   Minerva – Genevieve’s sister Belleni – husband   Mozart – Genevieve’s brother Adalaide - wife	J. Pierpont Morgan Laura J. P. Jr. “Jack” Juliet Anna   Bernard Berenson – affair, wrote art book Belle read at age 10 Mary – wife   William Caxton, printer – “Le Morte Darthur” “made printed word available to the masses” [page 141)

 

For Discussion:

NOTE: Page numbers are from the hardbacked edition.

1.       How much different was Belle’s and Teddy’s experience passing as white?  Given their age difference, that was all Teddy knew.

2.       Discuss the interaction between Belle and the colored server at the Vanderbilt ball in May 1906.  Belle’s mother advised her not to make eye contact with colored people, but Belle looked at the server too long and she thought, “in the ephemeral connection we’ve made, I can see that she knows” (page 57).  Then “the servingwoman grins. A broad, delighted proud grin” (page 58).  Were you surprised at the woman’s reaction?

3.       Regarding Genevieve’s advice to be cautious and avoid eye contact with colored people, Belle decided to “be bold, daring to hide my differences in plain sight” (page 59).  Would her mother’s advice have been successful in Belle’s situation?

4.       Throughout their relationship, Belle often read out loud to J. P. Morgan.  Why do you think he enjoyed this?  As an adult, do you think you would enjoy being read to?  Is this the same as audio books?

5.       What did you think about Morgan and Belle’s relationship, both working and personal?  One of his mistresses told Belle in 1911 that Belle was “the most important person in his life” (page 231).

 

6.       Why do you think Anne Morgan had such negative feelings toward Belle?

7.       In March 1908, Belle’s family returned to Washington D. C. for Grandma Fleet’s funeral.  In doing so, they had to abide by the rules for colored people.  How difficult was this for the family?  Was it possible for Genevieve’s family to understand the choices she made for her children and herself?  

8.       Did you understand why Genevieve made this decision?  She stated, “I did what I had to do to give my children the best opportunities, the best life” (page 101).  Do you think it was right for her to do so?

9.       Were you surprised that when Belle and her father met in 1913, that he told her, “One day, Belle, we will be able to reach back through the decades and claim you as one of our own?  Your accomplishments will be part of history; they’ll show doubtful white people what colored people can do” (page 275).   Were you surprised that he approved of her decision to pass as white?  

10.   As the story progressed, what did you think about Berenson?  They both were hiding their heritage.  In the end he betrayed Belle by sharing information with the Duveens, art dealers.

11.   Because Belle destroyed most of her personal papers, it is undocumented that she actually had an abortion in 1910.  In the Historical Note on the authors state that there is some evidence of this happening, “but the details are not documented” (page 326).  Should this have been included in the novel?  How did this event add to your understanding of Belle?

12.   Reflecting on Richard Greener’s statement in question 9, do you think this was one of the unexpressed reasons the authors wrote this book?

13.   In the Author’s Notes, Marie Benedict wrote, “I’d always believed myself to be a proponent of equality for all, but my conversations with Victoria (co-author) made clear how little I knew about the struggle and about myself” (page 334).  By reading this book did you gain any insights into the struggle of African Americans in our society?

The Last Green Valley, Mark Sullivan

 

Characters/People
Ukraine	Russia and Germany
Martel family: Emil Adeline Baby Waldemar – deceased Wilhelm “Will” Waldemar “Walt”   Lydia Losing “Oma” – Adeline’s mother Karl – father, taken by Russians for stealing grain 1929, returned home Malea – sister, brain injury   Karoline Martel – Emil’s mother Johann – father Theresa “Rese” – sister Wilhelm and Reinhold – sons, drafted by Germans, never heard from   Marie – Adeline’s cousin Twins – Hans and Rutgar Klaus – surgeon, in war   Mrs. Kantor – Adeline’s employer Esther “Ilse” - friend	SS Haussmann Nosske - superior   Nikolas   Corporal Gheorghe – brain injury, wants to be a bee keeper   Private Kumar   Ernst Decket – medic, SS sergeant, helped Rese with drugs   Claude Wahl – had shortwave radio   Peter and Greta Schmidt Forced to house three soldiers, Adeline and 2 boys   Captain Kharkov – boarding with Schmidt’s   Lieutenant Eloise Gerhardt – secret police

 

For Discussion:

NOTE: Page numbers are from the paperback edition.

1.       Emil kept referring to an incident with Haussmann several times, but it was never explained until page 213.  Did you like this writing device or did you keep thinking you had missed something?

2.       Discuss Emil’s mother, Karoline. When asked to watch baby Waldemar, she drank the cream for the baby when he was not drinking it.  She also blamed Rese for the accident where she lost her legs saying, “The Lord took her legs and that…sin in your hands because of her fornication” (page 163).   She also showed little emotion when Rese returned home from the hospital with her artificial legs.  Can you understand her behavior?

3.       What did you think of Lieutenant Gerhardt?   In 1946, when Adeline was working for Colonel Vasiliev, she asked her to spy on Vasiliev.   At one point in the conversation, Adeline told Gerhardt about Kharkov trying to rape her and fighting him off.  Gerhardt praised her saying, “Good for you Adeline.  I’ll make a note of that” (page 374).   Do you think she would have gotten the same reaction from a man? 

4.       Discuss Corporal Gheorghe and his outlook on life.  He told Emil our thoughts influence events.  He said, “What you seek is what you will find, but only if you hunt it with all your heart and mind” (page 335).  Do you think this is possible? 

5.       Before Adeline met Emil, she worked for Yudat Kantor in Ukraine.  Mrs. Kantor’s advice to Adeline (age 14) was “our job in life is to endure, to be kind, and to constantly put the past behind us and not dwell too much on the future” (page 86). How valid was this advice as the story unfolded over the next 18 years?

6.       Regarding the time Emil almost shot the Jewish family, Gheorghe said, “you begged God not to make you a murderer.  Then you showed courage telling the Nazi, no” (page 323).  “You did not have to kill because you did the right thing” (page 324).  This thought process relieved Emil’s guilt.  Did you agree?

7.       Discuss the choices people made in the face of war.  Did you understand the choices each person made?

a.       Adeline to help Esther (Isle)

b.       Emil to not shoot the Jewish family

c.       Ilse pretended not to be Jewish and survived as a prostitute in Poland (pages 226-227)

d.       Marie joined Russian soldiers in the truck after both her babies dies (pages 272-273)

8.       When Kharkov confronted Adeline in the church with the intent on raping her, Adeline warded him off with a knife and the words, “your young wife will know you not only as a rapist, but a cold-blooded killer on Christmas Eve” (page 313).  Were you surprised this stopped him?  Was the author showing some touch of humanity in him? 

9.       There are many books about WW II.   Did they have a different perspective from this one? 

10.   Given the current situation with Russia attacking Ukraine, did you find this a difficult book to read?  Did you gain any insights?

11.   Did you see the family picture at the end of the book taken in 1947?  If you saw it before you read the book, how did that affect your reading?  If you did not see it until you finished the book, do you think your reading would have been different if you knew the family survived?