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The Muse Discussion Guide: Home
Articles, Interviews, and Reviews
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The Muse by Jessie Burton review – a solid follow-up to The MiniaturistThe Guardian, June 25, 2016.
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Jessie Burton's The Muse almost tops The MiniaturistThe Telegraph, July 6, 2016.
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The MuseKirkus, April 13, 2016.
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Jessie Burton: ‘Success can be as fracturing to your self as failure’The Guardian, June 26, 2016.
Other Works by Jessie Burton
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The Miniaturist by
ISBN: 9780062306814
Videoes
Discussion Questions
(From Picador)
1. The Muse weaves together stories set in 1960s London and 1930s Spain. How evocative did you find these settings and what did you learn about life at that time? Did you prefer one of these plot strands to the other?
2. Odelle and Olive both have to overcome obstacles in order to pursue their artistic passions. Are there other similarities between these two characters?
3. Of all the characters in the novel, whose life do you feel was most affected by the painting that connects them all?
4. There are many examples of a close female friendship in the novel – which left the deepest impression on you? Would you say the characters’ friendships or their romantic relationships ultimately shaped them most?
5. What did you make of Isaac Robles and his involvement in both the Schloss family and the rising tensions in Spain?
6. Teresa struggles to keep Olive’s secret. Do you feel she acted with Olive’s best interests at heart? What would you have done?
7. What did you make of Marjorie Quick and her role in Odelle’s life?
8. The Muse explores the relationship between an artist or writer and their creative work – how important do you think the identity of the creator is to a piece of art or writing?
9. The women in The Muse all hide a part of themselves. Why do you think they each feel compelled to do so, and are there similar pressures on women today?
10. Has a book or work of art ever changed your life – if so, what was it and can you describe the effect it had on you?
Reserve a copy
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The Muse by
ISBN: 9780062409928
Suggestions for further reading
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Golden Earrings by
ISBN: 9781476790336Paloma Batton is the granddaughter of Spanish refugees who fled Barcelona after the Civil War. A disciplined student attending the school of the Paris Opera Ballet, Paloma lets little get in the way of her career until she receives a mysterious pair of golden earrings. She begins exploring her Spanish heritage and becomes fascinated by la Rusa, a woman who rose from poverty to become one of the great flamenco dancers of modern times before committing suicide. As Paloma begins to unravel the secrets of the past, she discovers more than one person who had good reason for wanting la Rusa dead—including Paloma’s own grandmother. -
The Last Painting of Sara de Vos by
ISBN: 9780374106683In The Last Painting of Sara de Vos, Smith deftly bridges the historical and the contemporary, tracking a collision course between a rare landscape by a female Dutch painter of the golden age, an inheritor of the work in 1950s Manhattan, and a celebrated art historian who painted a forgery of it in her youth. -
The Bookman's Tale by
ISBN: 9780670026470Lovett’s debut is a century-spanning web of literary mystery that ensnares American Peter Byerly, a rare bookseller. Living abroad in the months after the death of his wife Amanda, Peter is mystified to discover a watercolor uncannily resembling her—especially since it’s from the Victorian era.