Mad Honey is a collaborative novel written by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan. It follows Olivia, mom of Asher, after his girlfriend Lily dies in mysterious circumstances. Asher is arrested for her homicide, and because the trial unfolds, we get to see each Olivia’s perspective as she fights for her son, and Lily’s perspective within the run-up to her dying.
Like a lot of Picoult’s books, this novel brings up a variety of questions, and it makes for a superb e-book membership choose. Should you’re preparing in your subsequent meetup, listed here are some fascinating Mad Honey e-book membership questions to make use of as a jumping-off level.
18 Guide Membership Questions for Mad Honey
The e-book opens with Olivia remembering her being pregnant along with her son, Asher. She wished him to be a lady, however then is relieved when he’s born: ‘Higher to have a boy, who would by no means be somebody’s sufferer.’
What do you concentrate on this opening? Did it offer you a touch about what was to come back? Do you suppose Olivia nonetheless felt the identical method on the finish of the story?
Whereas Olivia’s chapter opens along with her longing to have a child lady, Lily’s chapter opens along with her dad and mom eager for a child boy. Gender – and all of the stereotypes and meanings we connect to it – is a big issue within the unfolding story.
How do you suppose the writers dealt with every character’s perspective on gender? Did any of it ring true to your personal experiences?
Olivia and Lily get on very nicely, with each of them having fun with random information, and naturally, each of them caring deeply for Asher.
How do you suppose Olivia’s emotions for Lily modified after her dying?
The e-book runs in reverse instructions: Olivia’s chapters transfer ahead in time, whereas Lily’s transfer backward.
Do you suppose these reverse timelines constructed stress?
Olivia was in an abusive relationship along with her husband when Asher was small. They needed to flee, and Olivia by no means defined what occurred to Asher. When Asher will get older, he seeks out his father of his personal accord, thus protecting his personal secret from Olivia.
Do you suppose Asher would have been sincere with Olivia if she had been sincere with him? Do you agree along with her resolution to cover the reality from him?
Lily’s mom, Ava, is devastated and grieving. We solely see her sometimes, however she is clearly at odds with Olivia, believing Asher to be responsible.
Would you’ve got favored to study extra about Ava? What did you concentrate on her final moments within the e-book?
Through the trial, we discover out that Lily was trans.
How did you suppose this info would influence the trial? Did you suppose it could have a optimistic or detrimental consequence for Asher and Olivia?
Asher and Lily’s relationship just isn’t easy. There are small moments that give Olivia trigger to doubt, like Asher grabbing Lily after he sees her speaking to a different boy, for instance. These small moments trigger their pal, Maya, to begin worrying about her well-being.
Did you suppose that Asher killed Lily?
There are different ways in which Lily may have died: it may have been an accident, after all, or another person may have pushed her down the steps. There isn’t a definitive proof that Asher pushed her.
Should you didn’t imagine it was Asher, who did you suppose killed Lily, and did this suspicion change over the course of the novel?
Olivia has a detailed relationship along with her bees, and she or he usually talks at size in regards to the nature of the hives she takes care of. She cares deeply for them and goes out of her solution to attempt to rescue the bees when they’re attacked, for instance.
What do you suppose the bees symbolize within the story?
Mike and Olivia strike up a relationship, tentatively bonding over time. He turns into a trusted determine for Olivia, and offers her hope for a happier future.
What did you consider their relationship? Did it make sense within the context of the broader story?
Olivia and Asher are handled badly by the locals after the information of Asher’s arrest breaks, and it turns into tougher for them to dwell comfortably.
What do you concentrate on the locals and their instinctive reactions to show towards Olivia? How do you suppose you’d really feel in her place?
We study that Asher tracked down Lily’s father towards her will. He presumes that Lily desires to see him, which after all she doesn’t, due to Lily’s father’s remedy of her when he came upon she was trans.
What did you consider Asher’s resolution to do that with out consulting Lily first?
Olivia tries to know what it is perhaps like for Lily as a trans lady, confronting a few of her personal prejudices. She talks to Elizabeth to get her perspective, however she comes at it along with her personal opinions: ‘Why not simply make peace with the physique you’ve got?’
What did you consider Elizabeth’s response to Olivia’s questions? Do you suppose it was okay for Olivia to strategy Elizabeth on this method?
After Asher is discovered not responsible, the household battle to get again to regular: ‘You can not ever actually return to regular. You might be innocent, however stained.’
Do you suppose that Asher and Olivia will discover peace of their future? Did you are feeling happy that they’d be capable to heal collectively?
On the very finish of the novel, we uncover the reality of how Lily died, in a surprising second that confounds each Asher and Olivia.
What did you consider this second, did you see it coming? What did you consider the implications for the particular person concerned?
This story has two authors. Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan. They labored carefully collectively to create the story. Whereas Picoult wrote Olivia’s chapters and Boylan wrote Lily’s, they every edited one another’s chapters to make the story a cohesive entire.
Might you inform the story was written by two completely different authors?
Picoult, in a word on the finish of the story, says this: ‘Generally making the world a greater place simply includes creating house for the people who find themselves already in it.’
Do you agree with this assertion? How do you suppose the story would have been completely different for Lily if house had been made for her?
Hopefully, it will enable you to to have an fascinating dialogue: Mad Honey is an excellent e-book membership choose, with loads of twists and turns to maintain you speaking!
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Megan Bidmead
Visitor author
Megan is a contract author based mostly in Somerset, England. When she’s not writing about books, video video games, and popular culture, she’s working round after her two children and attempting to squeeze within the occasional stroll within the countryside.
