publishing logo uses 60%K, READER GUIDE · 7. Who is the first to die in the story? How does...
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ABOUT THIS GUIDE • Does a person require a guide to read? To live? To become an adult? • Can one be taught such lessons with a book? Or at a school? These are the exquisite questions at the core of this gothic fantasy series – questions that this guide will not so much attempt to answer as to invite you, the reader, to build upon, to expand to universal form, and to lead you to your own excellence in word-craft and scholar- ship. The Wayward Children novellas speak to both adult and young adult readers. Common Core-aligned content is annotated for high school students and educators. For college readers, the discussion questions and exercises below support coursework in genre studies (science fic- tion, fantasy, modern gothic novels) as well as creative writing and literary analysis. TO BEGIN... The gothic fantasy novella 1 1. From classics such as Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, to iconic character studies such as Truman Capote’s Breakfast at Tiffany’s to modern mini-mas- terworks such as Annie Proulx’s Brokeback Mountain, the novella is a form that has inspired stunning works by writers across the ages. 1 Aligned with Common Core State Standards ELA-LITERACY.RL.9- 10.10 and RL.11-12.10 READER GUIDE a. Go to the library or online to find a definition of the literary term novella. b. As you read Seanan McGuire’s work, note the ways in which the novella form is particularly suited to the plots and themes she explores. c. Make a list of at least six notable novellas you would like to read. 2. One could argue that the novellas in Seanan Mc- Guire’s Wayward Children series are gothic fantasies. a. Go to the library or online to find definitions for the terms ‘gothic,’ ‘fantasy’ and the literary phrase ‘gothic fantasy.’ b. Make a list of 4 to 6 tenets or features you ex- A Common Core–Aligned Guide to THE WAYWARD CHILDREN SERIES by SEANAN McGUIRE
Transcript of publishing logo uses 60%K, READER GUIDE · 7. Who is the first to die in the story? How does...
ABOUT THIS GUIDE• Doesapersonrequireaguidetoread?Tolive?
Tobecomeanadult?
• Canonebetaughtsuchlessonswithabook?Orataschool?
Thesearetheexquisitequestionsatthecoreofthisgothicfantasyseries–questionsthatthisguidewillnotsomuchattempttoanswerastoinviteyou,thereader,tobuildupon,toexpandtouniversalform,andtoleadyoutoyourownexcellenceinword-craftandscholar-ship.
TheWaywardChildrennovellasspeaktobothadultandyoungadultreaders.CommonCore-alignedcontentisannotatedforhighschoolstudentsandeducators.Forcollegereaders,thediscussionquestionsandexercisesbelowsupportcourseworkingenrestudies(sciencefic-tion,fantasy,moderngothicnovels)aswellascreativewritingandliteraryanalysis.
TO BEGIN. . .The gothic fantasy novella1
1. FromclassicssuchasCharlesDickens’A Christmas Carol,toiconiccharacterstudiessuchasTrumanCapote’sBreakfast at Tiffany’stomodernmini-mas-terworkssuchasAnnieProulx’sBrokeback Mountain,thenovellaisaformthathasinspiredstunningworksbywritersacrosstheages.
1 Aligned with Common Core State Standards ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.10 and RL.11-12.10
READER GUIDE
a. Gotothelibraryoronlinetofindadefinitionoftheliterarytermnovella.
b. AsyoureadSeananMcGuire’swork,notethewaysinwhichthenovellaformisparticularlysuitedtotheplotsandthemessheexplores.
c. Makealistofatleastsixnotablenovellasyouwouldliketoread.
2. OnecouldarguethatthenovellasinSeananMc-Guire’sWayward Childrenseriesaregothicfantasies.
a. Gotothelibraryoronlinetofinddefinitionsfortheterms‘gothic,’‘fantasy’andtheliteraryphrase‘gothicfantasy.’
b. Makealistof4to6tenetsorfeaturesyouex-
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A Common Core–Aligned Guide to
THE WAYWARD CHILDREN SERIES bySEANANMcGUIRE
2 • wayward children series reader guide tor.com
pecttofindinagothicfantasynovella.LookfortheseasyoureadoneormoreWayward Childrenstory.
c. Writeashortessayorimagined‘lettertotheeditor’arguingthatthegothicfantasyisanessentialliterarygenreforteenandyoungadultreaders.Citeexamplesfromliteratureandlife.
3. Fromthetitleofthefirstnovellatothefinalwordofthelast,theword“door”isessential,iconic,mysteri-ousandfarmorecomplexthanareadercouldantici-pate.Beforeyoubeginreading,createadrawingorpainting,imagecollage,brainstormwordlistorpoeminspiredbythisseeminglymundaneword.
COME IN. . .
BOOK 1
EVERY HEART A DOORWAY
• WinneroftheHugoAwardforBestNovella
• WinneroftheNebulaAwardforBestNovella
• WinneroftheLocusAwardforBestNovella
• A2017AlexAwardWinner
• A2017RainbowListTop10Pick
• ALibraryReadsPick(April2016)
Discuss2, Analyze & Write
1. IntheChapter1descriptionofEleanorWest’sHomeforWaywardChildren,whatisimportantaboutthisplacebeingcalleda“home”andnota“school”?Whatisthemeaningofthefinaltwowordsofsub-text,“NoQuests”?
2. WhoisEleanorWest?Whymightshebe“danger-ous”andtowhom?
3. WhatmightbeimportantabouttheorderinwhichNancymeetsdenizensofEleanorWest’shome?
2 Aligned with Common Core State Standards ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.1 and SL.11-12.1
4. Writetwo-sentencecharacterdescriptionsofSumi,Christopher,Jill,JackandSeraphina.
5. HowdoesKadehelpLundyandEleanor?HowmightKade’stalentforsewingbeparticularlysignificantintermsofhispathtoEleanorWest,andhisroleattheschool?
6. Asenseofplace–atruehome–canbeavitalpartofahappychildhoodand,perhaps,ahappyadulthood,too.AsJackexplainstoNancy,“Forus,placeswewentwerehome.Wedidn’tcareiftheyweregoodorevilorneutralorwhat.Wecaredaboutthefactthatforthefirsttime,wedidn’thavetopretendtobesomethingweweren’t.Wejustgottobe.Thatmadeallthedifferenceintheworld”(p.56).Writeyourownparagraphexplainingordefiningatrue“home.”
7. Whoisthefirsttodieinthestory?HowdoesElea-norreacttothishorribleevent?Whatbecomesofthebody?Whatothergruesomeeventsfollow?
8. WhydoyouthinkChapter11istitled“YouCanNeverGoHome”?WhatbecomesclearaboutJill’sidentityasthestoryends?Whatsacrifice(s)doesJackmakeinthechapter?
9. Lushwithevocativelanguage,McGuire’snovellaalsopositsmanyapparentoppositeorcontrastingwordsthatare,intheworldofdoorsandwaywardchildren,notcontrastsatall.Divideasheetofpaperintotwocolumnstofillwithatleastsixpairsof“opposite”wordtensionsinthenovel,suchas“living/dead,”“stillness/motion,”and“real/unreal.”Withfriendsorclassmates,discussthewaythesepairsexistintensioninyourownrealitybuthaveadifferentormorefluidrelationshipintheEvery Heart a Doorway.3
10. Onpage83,Nancyconsidersthewayherparentssortoflove“…wantedtofixher,andrefusedtoseethatshewasn’tbroken.”IsNancybroken,orpossiblyanorexic,inthe“real”world?Citeevidencefromthetexttosupportyourposition.Writea2-to4-page“prequel”chapterdescribingNancy’slifethedaybe-foreshefoundher“door.”Ifdesired,writeasecondshortchapterdescribingthedayshereturnedtoherparents’home.4
3 Aligned with Common Core State Standards ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.4 4 Aligned with Common Core State Standards ELA-LITERACY.W.9-10.3
and W.11-12.3
wayward children series reader guide • 3tor.com
LOOK BACK. . .
BOOK 2
DOWN AMONG THE STICKS & BONES
• ALibraryReadsPick(June2017)
“McGuirehasamiraculoustalentforexaminingadolescentdiscontent,weddingthestrangewiththepoignant,thefearsomewiththefasci-nating.”—RT Book Reviews(TopPick!41⁄2stars)
“Beautifullycraftedandsmartlywritten,thisfairy-talenovellaiseverythingthatspeculativefictionreaderslookfor:fantasticalworlds,diversecharacters,andprosethathitshomewithitsemotionaltruths.”—Library Journal(starredreview)
“McGuire’sexquisitelywrittenfairytaleisaboutthechoicesthatcanalterthecourseofalifeforever,lostinnocence,andwhatitistoloveandbeloved.”—Publishers Weekly(starredreview)
Discuss5, Analyze & Write
1. Thisnovellabeginsinaworldsoliteral,sopedantic,thatitalmostfeelsmake-believe.Whydoyouthinktheauthorchosetobeginthestoryinthisway?
2. Gotothelibraryoronlinetofindadefinitionoftheliteraryterm‘originstory.’Althoughmorecommonlyappliedtothecomicbookgenre,couldyouarguethatitisaparticularlyapttermtoapplytothisgoth-icfantasy?Whyorwhynot?
3. WhattechniquesdoestheauthorusetoshowtheevolutionofJacquelineandJillian’ssensesofselfastheyjourneyacrossthemoor?Visitanartmuseumorexploreanonlineartsourcetofindimagesthatevokesimilartransformationalfeelingsasthosewordedbytheauthor.Shareyourfindingswithfriendsorclassmates.
4. Onpage40,theauthornotes,“Onthedayourstory
5 Aligned with Common Core State Standards ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.1 and SL.11-12.1
trulystarts…JacquelineandJilliansatintheirroom,ontheirrespectivebeds,andtheroomwassofullofangerandsilencethatitscreamed.”Whatisimport-antaboutthismoment?Howdoesitencapsulatetherelationshipbetweenthetwins?Howdoesitforeshadowelementsoftheworldthetwinsareabouttoenterandthechoicestheymustmake?
5. Earlyinthestory,JaquelineandJillian’sgrand-mother,Louise,toldthemthattheywere“…perfectexactlyastheywere,andtheywouldneverneedtochangeforanyone”(p.25).Isthisthecentralcontradiction,crisisorlieofthenovel?Doyouthinkthetwins’doorwouldhaveopenedifLouise,andthemessagesherepresented,hadnotbeensentaway?
6. Inchapter5,JackchoosestogoimmediatelywithDr.Bleakbecause:“Shehadafeelingthatifshelin-gered,shewouldneverleave,andagain,thatwouldgopoorlyforhersister…Jilltrustedtooeasily,andgothurteveneasier’(p.91).IsJack’sinsightsurpris-ing?Isitcorrect?Doyouthinkshemakestherightdecision?
7. Arevampiresandmadscientistsopposites?Answerthisquestionusingquotesfromthenovelorinfor-mationfromothersources.Dovampiresandmadscientistssharesimilarorigins,akintotheparallelchildhoodsofJackandJill?Couldtheobservationthat‘Howquicklytheygrowapart,whenthereissomethingtobesuperiorabout’beappliedtothetwins,totheMasterandDr.Bleak,ortothegirls’parentsandothersintheirsocialandbusinessworlds?Isthisstatementtrueinyourownworld?Explainyouranswer.
8. Gotothelibraryoronlinetofindadefinitionoftheterm“binary.”Listatleastfourwaysthistermappliestothestory,impactstheliterarystructure,oraffectstherulesofmoorvillagewherethetwinsfindthemselvesathome.
9. Describeelementsoftheirmoorworldwhichthetwinsfind“good”orsatisfyingbutseemtothereadertoberatherhorrible.DoesJillianrealignallpossiblenotionsofgoodwithherattackonAlexis?HadyoubeenJack,couldyouhavefoundsomethingtoloveinJillafterthisattack?
10. WhatconfusesChesteraboutthegirlsupontheirreturnonthefinalpageofthenovella?Withfriends
4 • wayward children series reader guide tor.com
orclassmates,discusswhothe“smallboy”refer-encedonthepagecouldbe.Writea2-to3-pagescenethatimmediatelyfollowsthefinalmomentofthestory,takinganomniscientthird-personpointofviewakintothatofSeananMcGuire.6
REAWAKEN. . .
BOOK 3
BENEATH THE SUGAR SKY
• ALibraryReadsPick(January2018)
“We’retoldsomedoorsopenonlyonce,butreaderswillbegMcGuiretokeepthedooropentotheseworldsinperpetuity.Phenomenal.”—Booklist(starredreview)
Discuss7, Analyze & Write
1. Ifyouhavereadthetwopreviousnovelsinthisseries,doyouthinkDown Among the Sticks and BonescanbeviewedasaprequeltoEvery Heart a Door-way?And,ifso,howdoesBeneath the Sugar Skyfitintothistimeline–orchangeyoursenseoftime(orliterarytime)altogether?8
2. Earlyinthenovella,thenarratorsaysthatnoneoftheparentswhodepositedtheirchildrenatherhomecouldhavecalledEleanorWest“akiller.”Whymightthatwordevenbementioned?Whatdoesthenarratorwantreaderstounderstandaboutthe“home”Eleanorprovidesandthechildrenwhostaywithher?
3. WhenCoraarrivesattheschool,shebecomesfastfriendswithNadya.Whatphysicalandemotionalcommonalitiesdothegirlsshare?
6 Aligned with Common Core State Standards ELA-LITERACY.W.9-10.3 and W.11-12.3
7 Aligned with Common Core State Standards ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.1 and SL.11-12.1
8 Aligned with Common Core State Standards ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.5 and 11-12.5
4. HowisRiniintroducedtotheEleanorWest?ExplainhowRini’spresenceinthestorymakestimeanes-sentialdriveroftheplot.
5. WhoisChristopher?Whatreal-lifetraumafromhislifeisreferencedinthestory?Howdoesthisalignwiththeworldtowhichheseekstoreturn?DoyouthinkChristopherisactuallystill“dying”inthe“real”world?Whyorwhynot?
6. PopularizedbyAmericanmythologistJosephCamp-bell,theconceptofthe“hero’sjourney”or“mono-myth”positsthatallmythictalesfollowauniversalcycleofawakening,journeyfromknowtounknownworld,tests,rewardsandreturntotheknown.Gotothelibraryoronlinetolearnmoreaboutthehero’sjourneyinliterature.DiagramtheplotofBeneath the Sugar Skyusingacircularformatasseeninmanyhero’sjourneygraphicplanners.Doyoufeelthisnovellafitsthehero’sjourneymold?Ifso,howdoesthistypeofanalysisenhanceyourunderstandingofthestory?
7. WhoisPonder?Whydoyouthinktheauthorgavehimthisname,andchosea“candy”worldanda“sugary”romancetobethesourceofRini’slife?WhenRiniinsiststhatsheis“important,”whatdoesshereallymean?
8. WhoandwhenistheBaker?Whereisshefrom?Doesherpowermakesense?Whyorwhynot?
9. Kadeaspirestomorefullyunderstandtheworldsofthedoors,andaspirestocreateacompasstoorganizehisknowledge.Usingcluesfromthisandothernovellasintheseries,drawyourowndiagramorganizingthedifferentnames,environments,rulesandtypes–nonsense,logic,etc.–ofworldsandtheirrelationshipsintheWayward Childrenuniverse.
10. Neartheendofthenovel,thenarratorexplainsthatthosewhohadfoundadoor“…hadaneedtrappedsomewhereintheirbones,gnawingconstantly,tryingtogetout”(p.157).Howmightthisbebothaliteralandametaphoricalexplanation?Isfantasyalwaysandunquestionablymake-believe?Createasong,poemorvisualartworktoelucidateyouranswer.
wayward children series reader guide • 5tor.com
FINALLY. . .Review, Consider & Imagine
1. Twotruthsandalie.Inviteyourselfintooneoftheabovenovellas.Inventanewnameforyourselfandchoosethreeessentialcharacterattributes,twoofwhicharetrulyqualitiesyoupossessandonewhichisatalent,quirkorflawofyourimagination.Writeyourselfintoafavoritescene.
2. HowmanycisgenderboyspopulatetheWayward Childrennovellas?Howmightthisseriesbereadasanexplorationofthetensionsbetweengender,physicalselfandpsychological/emotionalidentity?Explainyouranswers.
3. FromHogwartstoEleanorWest’sHome,whydoyouthinkboardingschoolsandsimilarestablish-mentsprovideessentialsettingsforfantasynovels?Citeexamplesfromthisseriesandotherfantasiesyouhavereadtosupportyouranswer.
4. Revisitthenovelstofindexamplesofreimaginedmythologies,suchasvampireandmermaid,andre-interpretedliteraryfantasyworlds,suchWon-derlandandOz.HowdothesecorrelatetospecificworldsintheWaywarduniverse?Howmighttheycorrelatetodifferentwayschildrenaremisunder-stoodintheir“real”worlds?Isareala“four-letterword,”asEleanorWestseemstobelieve?9
9 Aligned with Common Core State Standards ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.9 and RL.11-12.7
OR, NOT SO FINALLY. . .1. NeartheendofEvery Heart a Doorway,Nancydis-
coversanotefromSumiwiththewords,“You’reno-body’sdoorwaybutyourown,andtheonlyonewhogetstotellyouhowyourstoryendsisyou”(p.168).InBeneath the Sugar Sky,Nadyatakesadivebeforethefinallines,“Thereiskindnessintheworld,ifweknowhowtolookforit.Ifweneverstartdenyingthedoor”(p.174).Whatiskindness?Whatisa“door”?
2. Isholdingontochildhoodgoodorbad?Canonechoosetoholdontochildhoodatall?Ifso,shoulditbeagoalforadults?Whyorwhynot?
3. SeananMcGuireconcludesheronlineauthorinfor-mationparagraphwiththefollowingsentence:She writes all biographies in the third person, because it’s easier that way. HowmightthisconceptreflectanessentialthemeoftheWaywardChildrenseries?Definethisthemeandexplainyouranswer.10
10 Aligned with Common Core State Standards LITERACY.RL.9-10.2 and RL.11-12.2
About the Author
Seanan McGuire istheauthoroftheOctoberDayeurbanfantasyseries,theInCryptidseries,andotherworks.ShealsowritesdarkerfictionasMiraGrant.
Seanan lives in Seattle with her cats, a vast collection of creepy dolls, and horrormovies,andsufficientbookstoqualifyherasafirehazard.
Shewasthewinnerofthe2010JohnW.CampbellAwardforBestNewWriter,andin2013shebecamethefirstpersonevertoappearfivetimesonthesameHugoballot.
