by Katie,
Maybe we can think about how people struggle to break away from family patterns. Are all children raised by abusive parents doomed to repeat the cycle? Can anyone break free from that type of cycle? Or more specifically can Bird’s family break from it?
While there are male characters in our novel, female ones take the lead. Who do you think was the strongest female character? What traits led to your opinion? What do we think about Glory Marie naming her daughters after birds? Do we think the girls were able to fly away?
Hi Nancy!
ReplyDeleteHope all is going well with you. The holiday season has started in full gear. I hope that people will be responsible regarding holiday visits. You just posted a lovely sunset picture on facebook. Beautiful! The kids are hopefully returning to school this week after two weeks all virtual learning. Benjamin was doing a hybrid of in person and virtual learning while Lillian was doing all in person. I hope it stays that way.
November’s book was rather quiet after the excitement of finishing the MaddAddam series. The male characters in Before Women had Wings were pretty uninteresting with little depth. I found Bird to be a child of extraordinary imagination. Her deep belief that the black bird had stolen her voice and her bravery when running away for the first time were quite intense scenes to me. I think for a young child, she was an incredibly strong character.
How did you feel about Glory Marie? Personally, I had such a hard time feeling any empathy toward her. I understand that she had her demons but the degree to which she beat her daughters and allowed her daughters to be beaten made me dislike her immensely. I probably can’t understand what it’s like to be raised in a home life where beatings are commonplace. I have spanked my kids before, certainly not the crazed beatings of Glory Marie but a swat on a diapered bum once or twice to me is acceptable. In the case of my strong willed daughter, it was completely ineffective as a deterrent, haha! But ultimately Glory’s excessive attacks on her children kept me from cheering for her even after she decided to go get help. It takes a great deal of courage to change yourself so I will give her the credit due for trying.
I feel that Bird and Phoebe are able to fly away in the end by leaving with Ms. Zora. I like how Ms. Fowler leaves the book open. We are free to believe that Glory Marie will recover from her past traumas and become the mother she was meant to be. We are allowed to believe that Bird and Phoebe will thrive under the care of Ms. Zora. I do greatly enjoy the fact that a male character doesn’t swoop in and “save” the day. The female characters will save themselves and I appreciate that deeply.
I look forward to hearing your thoughts.
Much Love,
Katie
ReplyDeleteHi Katie,
We have rainy few days here which I am enjoying immensely, we really needed it. So different from last year with the bushfires all around us.
We are heading to Brisbane for Christmas, it is the first time for a few years we will all be together, I’m very excited about it.
I was looking back to this time last year when we were reading Reservoir 13. It was just after Sue and Jay’s Nordic cruise, and Jay has told me this is when Sue received her diagnosis. I’ve been thinking about her a lot this month as we approach Christmas and of course feeling for Jay as he heads into his first Christmas without her and I assume he is still unable to travel to his family in Malaysia.
I found our book quite difficult to read. It was the level of violence that affected me most. I found Glory May such a pitiful character and so caught up in the generational cycle of violence that I sadly, just don’t know if she could ever turn her life around. What sort of help would be available to her, a woman from her socio-economic background, with her addictions and trauma issues in the Deep South?
Letting Phoebe and Bird leave with Miss Zora was by far the best thing she could have done. At least there is a chance for a better life for the girls. Although, I’m pretty sure life in the Bayous with Miss Zora is going to be a tough slog.
I enjoyed Bird’s imagination, but was saddened by the situations in her life that prompted the flights from reality. Phoebe also was a strong character I liked her as well.
I agree with you about the male characters in the story, but it was refreshing and even relieving when Mr Ippolito and his sons posed no threat and Phoebe’s romance with the younger son proved quite conventional. I think I needed some non threatening males in the story by then.
I liked the character of Miss Zora although unfortunately for me I saw the movie trailer and I couldn’t unsee Oprah as Miss Zora. No offence to Oprah I think she’s great, but I had trouble reconciling her with the character.
How will we do our next novel?
I know I have split it over 2 months, but I will be guided by you as to whether we comment twice or just at the end. I’m all good with whatever you decide.
I hope you are all well and life is becoming more manageable. It is so sad to read of the escalating toll this virus is taking on your country. My thoughts are with you guys.
Much love,
Nancy