A Novel by Christina Meldrum

Alfred A. Knopf Reading Group Guide

Caution: spoiler alert

1. Maren teaches Aslaug that "science describes the world; it doesn't explain it."(p. 16) Describe Aslaug's world. Discuss how Maren and Aslaug's lifestyle is especially disturbing to outsiders like Lens Grumset, a neighbor who feels that they may be into witchcraft. How might Aslaug explain her world to outsiders? How is Aslaug unprepared to deal with the outside world that she seeks after her mother dies?
   
   
2. Aslaug has a troubling relationship with her mother. At one point, Maren asks Aslaug if she is plotting to fly away. Discuss how living in isolation makes Aslaug more interested in discovering the outside world. Why doesn't she run away? Trace Aslaug's search to understand her mother, even after Maren's death. Describe Aslaug's reaction to her mother's death.
   
   
3. The details of Aslaug's birth are mysterious. Why won't Maren identify Aslaug's father? Draw a parallel between Hester Prynne, the main character in The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Maren. Why does she hide the book from Aslaug? Debate whether Aslaug, like Pearl in The Scarlet Letter, is a symbol of shame and a punishment for her mother's sin.
   
   
4. Maren teaches Aslaug many languages. Explain the irony in Maren's belief that "the more languages you learn, the more free you will be in your thinking." (p. 58) Discuss what she means when she says, "Words oversimplify reality." (p. 58)
   
   
5. Sin, knowledge, and the human condition are themes in The Scarlet Letter. Discuss these themes as they relate to Madapple.
   
   
6. Maren claims to be an atheist. Yet, she spends hours studying the Torah, the Kabbalah, the Koran, and the Bible. What is she searching for?
   
   
7. Sara and Maren's fader was a botanist and mythologist, "interested in what he thought was the interweaving of nature and the divine." (p. 165) Explain his influence on Maren. Sara felt that her fader's interests were "misguided." Contrast her beliefs with those of Maren's. Debate the good and evil in Sara's chosen life. How might Aslaug's experiences with two trials and a complicated life on the "outside" affect her religious views? Discuss whether she is likely to find that place where science and religion meet.
   
   
8. Trace Aslaug's search for identity before and after her mother's death. Explain what Rune means when he says to her, "But your context may become your prison." (p. 245) At what point does Aslaug miss her mother? What does Aslaug mean when she says that Maren was her "Artemis"? (p. 307)
   
   
9. Discuss the structure of the novel. How does the trial keep the reader engaged in Aslaug's story?
   
   
10. Explain the title of the novel.