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TROUBLE THE WATER
What People are
Saying
Overview
Read an Excerpt
Buy the Book
Reader's Guide/Book
Club Questions
THE SPIRIT OF SWEETGRASS
What
People are Saying
Overview
and Origin
Read
an Excerpt
Buy the Book
Reader's
Guide/Book Club Questions
Gullah/Sweetgrass
links
Recent
Progress in Gullah/Geechee and sweetgrass culture
RECOMMENDATIONS
A Partial List of Authors/Books
I Adore
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books - The Spirit of Sweetgrass
Reader's
Guide/Book Club Discussion Questions
*Certain
plot "spoiler" questions have been left off here. Enjoy the
complete Reader's Guide in the back of The Spirit of Sweetgrass.
- Does
Daddy Jim truly sit with Essie Mae and speak with her? What does EJ
believe? How about Henrietta? Why do you think Daddy Jim visits Essie
Mae at her roadside stand? Why doesn’t he come to the house
on Rifle Range Road? If Daddy Jim truly loves Essie Mae, why do you
think he won’t go to Sunnydale Farms?
- Essie
Mae feels she’s found her calling in life. What is her calling?
Have you found your calling in life? If so, how did you realize it?
If not, what may be standing in your way? Do you believe everyone
has a calling?
- Essie
Mae is 78-years-old. Is she part of your generation, your mother’s,
or your grandmother’s? What characteristics does she share with
women of her generation?
- Both
Jeffrey Lowes and Jackson Hemmingway were cared for as children by
Essie Mae. What do you think about nanny-child relationships? What
does it say to you that a white family chooses a nanny who is African-American?
- What
do you think Essie Mae is most afraid of? How does she handle that
fear? What do you think Henrietta is most afraid of? How does she
handle her fears? Have you ever considered what you’re most
afraid of? How might your fears impact your actions and your loved
ones?
- What
does Essie Mae learn about Henrietta in the course of this book? What
does she learn about herself?
- When
Essie Mae is in heaven she says, “It’s a wonder we understand
each other a’tall down on Earth what with us only seeing little
snippets of folks every now and again.” Does Essie Mae ever
understand her daughter, Henrietta? Does Henrietta ever understand
her mother? In any relationship, how important is it that we understand
each other? What are some ways to foster better understanding?
- In
what ways is The Spirit of Sweetgrass a love story?
- In
this book, Essie Mae has a strong spiritual connection to places:
Mount Pleasant, the lime-green house, her roadside stand, Africa,
heaven. Do you have a spiritual connection to a place? Explain.
- The
themes of home and homeland are strong in The Spirit of Sweetgrass.
Why is heritage and paying homage to homeland important? What is Essie
Mae’s true homeland? What is yours?
- The
themes of life and death are threaded throughout this book. What are
some instances of these events? How do these events affect the characters
in the book? Essie Mae? Jeffrey? Henrietta?
- Discuss
the use of color in The Spirit of Sweetgrass. Are these colors
symbolic in any way?
- The
notion of “Power” or being “powerful” fuels
this story. What is Power, where does it come from, and who has it?
Does Essie Mae have power in the beginning of the book? In the end?
Is there power in Essie Mae’s “love baskets”?
- Who
or what is “the spirit of sweetgrass”?
- Heaven
is an important setting in this book. Describe what you imagine heaven
is like. What do you hope it will be like? Do you have any fears about
heaven? Do you believe there’s a connection between heaven and
Earth?
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