Mary Coin Discussion Guide: Home
Articles, Interviews, and Reviews
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A Knowing Eye: "Mary Coin" by Marisa SilverNY Times Sunday Book Review
By Antoine Wilson
Published: April 11, 2013 -
A New Focus On An Old Image In 'Mary Coin'NPR.org
by Heller McAlpin
March 07, 2013 -
Goodreads Reviewsgoodreads.com
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Unveiling The Mystery Of The "Migrant Mother" PhotoHuff Post Books,
Posted: 02/25/2014 -
Dorothea Lange’s iconic photograph inspires a skillful novelUSA Today Books, By Charles Finch,
March 06, 2013 -
Additional Interviews with Marisa Silvermarisasilver.com
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Dorothea Lange's "Migrant Mother" Photographs in the Farm Security Administration Collection: An OverviewLibrary of Congress Prints and Photographs Reading Room
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The Story of the "Migrant Mother"PBS.org, By Ben Phelan
Posted: 4.14.2014
Other Works by Marisa Silver
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Alone with You
ISBN: 9781416590293In this elegant, finely wrought new collection, Alone With You, Silver has created eight indelible stories that mine the complexities of modern relationships and the unexpected ways love manifests itself. -
The God of War by
ISBN: 9781416563167An autobiography told in poems, this selection of work spans more than 40 years, beginning with the avant-garde arts movement and political activism of the 1960s. A mixture of intense political poems, intimate love poems, and provocative reflections, it traces the journey of a woman intimately involved with many significant events of the 20th century. -
No Direction Home by
ISBN: 9780393058239Young Will Burton struggles to make sense of a redefined family after his father's disappearance, young Rogelio Augilar risks his life to illegally cross into Mexico to search for his father, and teenage Marlene McClure leaves her Midwestern home in search of a father she never knew.
Videos
Discussion Questions
(From litlovers.com)
Discussion Questions
1. Were you familiar with Dorothea Lange’s Migrant Mother photograph before reading Mary Coin? If so, what assumptions did you bring to your reading experiences about the photograph? The photographer?
2. When readers are first introduced to Mary, she is in the midst of her adolescence. How would you characterize her as a teenager? Do these personality traits stick with her throughout the novel? How does her grandfather’s legacy as the “Cherokee Murderer” impact her?
3. After being photographed in the Indian princess garb, Mary remarks that “she felt the queer nature of her power, how it made her feel strong and diminished all at once.” (46) How is this sentiment echoed throughout the novel? Relate this statement to Vera’s perspective of power behind the camera.
4. On page 6, Walker asserts that he tells his children “all his foundational stories, no matter howhumiliating.” When considering his relationship with his own father, why does Walker approachparenting in this way? Is it effective? Explore other ways that his childhood has influenced his personal and work-related decisions in adulthood.
5. Mary and Vera both contend with economic hardships throughout the course of the novel, eventually becoming the breadwinners for their families. How do these experiences affect their self-image? Their relationships with their children? Their spouses?
6. The words “For sure, you’ll be lame so” echo in Vera’s mind throughout the novel, yet on page 119 she also notes that her limp is one of her greatest advantages. How does photography help her overcome her self-consciousness?
7. Vera initially views photography solely as an occupation, while Everett is an “artist.” How does her conception of her career change over the course of the novel? Does she ever see herself as an artist? Discuss her ambitions in relation to the expected gender roles of the time.
8. Compare the marital history of Mary and Vera. Are their marriages borne out of love? Necessity? What do they learn from their failed marriages? How do they assert independence in their relationships?
9. On page 224, Walker states that “his image of his grandfather must be a construct derived from largely from photographs” rather than his own recollections. What does this imply about the influence of objects and photographs on memory? Do photographs manipulate—or even create—memories? Relate to modern-day culture. Does our constant documentation via cell phone photography and social media manipulate memory?
10. Walker, Mary, and Vera all express guilt over how they have raised their children. Discuss their concerns and characterize their parenting styles. How do they interact with their children? What do they celebrate about parenthood? What do they regret?
11. When Mary travels to the Goodwill in Chapter 31, she realizes “how silly the idea of owning was in the end.” (272) Given this, why do you think she buys back all of her items? Explore this in connection with the culture of poverty that Mary was raised in.
12. On page 184, Vera admits that she is “embarrassed” by her most famous photograph. Why does she have that reaction? Is she ever comfortable with her fame?
13. The scene where the famous photograph is taken is described twice in the novel, once from Mary’s point of view, once from Vera’s. Discuss the differences in the way the two women experience this encounter. What are the ethical ramifications for both women?
14. When Mary visits the gallery in Chapter 36, she is looking at the photograph when she overhears someone say “You can see it all in her face.” Discuss the irony of this arrangement. What does this assert about the relationship between the viewer and the subject in art? About perception and truth?
15. Discuss the last line of the novel: “There is no erasure.” Why do you think the author chose to end Mary Coin on this note?
(Questions issued by the publisher. )
Reserve a copy
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Mary Coin by
ISBN: 9780399160707Marisa Silver takes Dorothea Lange's 'Migrant Mother' photograph as inspiration for a breathtaking reinvention, a story of two women, one famous and one forgotten, and of the remarkable legacy of their chance encounter.
Suggestions for further reading
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Harpsong by
ISBN: 9780806138237Harlan Singer, a harmonica-playing troubadour, shows up in the Thompson family's yard one morning. He steals their hearts with his music, and their daughter with his charm. Soon he and his fourteen-year-old bride, Sharon, are on the road, two more hobos of the Great Depression, hitchhiking and hopping freights across the Great Plains in search of an old man and the settlement of Harlan's long-standing debt. -
Rainwater by
Ella Barron is determined that even the ravages of the Dust Bowl will not affect the well-ordered life she has built for herself and her special child, Solly. Aware that he evokes pity and distrust, Ella holds herself aloof from her small community, but her new boarder, David Rainwater, comes into her life— and changes it forever. As economic desperation creates bitter social unrest in the town and surrounding farms, Ella finds herself relying on Mr. Rainwater’s soft-spoken advice and the steely resolve of his convictions. But tensions escalate in the summer heat, until one violent night everything they believe in will be put to the ultimate test. -
Eight Girls Taking Pictures by
ISBN: 9781451682694Bestselling author Whitney Otto' s Eight Girls Taking Pictures i s a profoundly moving portrayal of the lives of women, imagining the thoughts and circumstances that produced eight famous female photographers of the twentieth century. -
The Obituary Writer by
ISBN: 9780393081428On the day John F. Kennedy is inaugurated, Claire, an uncompromising young wife and mother obsessed with the glamour of Jackie O, struggles over the decision of whether to stay in a loveless marriage or follow the man she loves and whose baby she may be carrying. Decades earlier, in 1919, Vivien Lowe, an obituary writer, is searching for her lover who disappeared in the Great San Francisco Earthquake of 1906. By telling the stories of the dead, Vivien not only helps others cope with their grief but also begins to understand the devastation of her own terrible loss.