ALN Monthly Book Club - Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik

Join us for the first book of 2019: Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik! Come for the book discussion, stay for Jim's (temporary) return as host of ALN Nerdy Book Club! Get yourself a warm blanket and sit yourself down in front of a roaring fire for this fantastic tale by the renowned author of Uprooted (one of our previous favorite book club books!)

Hope you enjoy this book as much as I did and it will surely lead to a fantastic discovery of fantasy worlds, fairy tales, and the lessons these worlds teach us. Happy reading!!!

For more information on how to find the group at the park: We meet at Presidio Park at the top of the hill, at whatever picnic tables we can grab in the shade, as close to the bathrooms as we can get without it getting smelly. 32°45'26.1"N 117°11'33.4"W

It is highly recommend you bring a folding chair or a blanket to lay on the ground. We usually sit atop pine needles, but some people are able to sit on the picnic tables or in the grass if any is near by.

We hope to see you there!

Upcoming books!

Spinning Silver - Naomi Novik - January
Redshirts - John Scalzi - February
How To Fight Presidents - Daniel O'Brien - February Non-fiction
The Children of Men - P.D. James - March
California Bones - Greg Van Eekhout - April
Red Rising - Pierce Brown - May
The Magicians - Lev Grossman - June
The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August - Claire North - July
Scythe - Neal Shusterman - August

1. Intro question: If you could recreate any fairy tale which one would you recreate?
2. With the intro as a kind of lead in, my first question for the group is what does it take to have a decent retelling/reimagining of a classic fairy tale? Is it important to keep the story as similar to the original as possible, or is it better to use as little of the original tale as possible? Do you think Classical fairy tales are ‘set in stone’ or do you think they should be open to reinterpretations? Do you appreciate what Novik did & or tried to do, or did you find yourself struggling with this story?
3. Do you all recall the original story of Rumplestiltskin? How many of you looked it up before, during or after reading this story? Reading it today, do you identify any stigmatization or anti-semitism that appears in the original story? In Spinning Silver, topics of cultural ostracism & prejudice are much easier to identify. Did you appreciate how Novik enlightens the reader through her story about the true plight of the Jewish people around the time the original fairy tale was created? Does a story like this help us undersand why & how a minority culture can become dangerously subjugated & oppressed? Does this kind of in depth retelling make you question any of the other fairy tales you were told as a child?
4. Magic always comes with a price. Did you enjoy the initial twist that Miryem’s “magic” was her intelligence & financial acumen? Why is it that some of the greatest fantasy novels utilize this concept? Besides the need for pushing a story forward, what is it about this idea that makes it so appealing to a reader? Is it too hard for us to imagine having great power & not having to be responsible with it?
5. The importance of names. If we don’t feel like we have already discussed this topic too much, what did you think of how Novik treated this issue in the book? Did you appreciate the instances of when & how knowing a person/thing’s name would give power over that person or thing? Like knowing the demon’s name or not knowing the Staryk’s name, or when Miryam named the child. What does this element add to the story?
6. How timely are the topics of greed, materialistic tendencies of capitalist peoples, & isolationism? Is this the perfect time for people to be reading a story like this? Or did you find it overly depressing? Did you hate Miryem for being a debt collector, her tactics or how she treated Wanda? Did you dislike how spoiled the rulers of the kingdom were or how Irina was treated by her parents?