Aviator's WifeThe next meeting of the All Good Books Club is at 7:00 PM, this Thursday, January 15, 2015 at the Leawood Pioneer Library (4700 Town Center Drive, Leawood, KS) to discuss  “The Aviator’s Wife” by Melanie Benjamin.

Unless you’re already familiar with more than the typically brief “history book” version of the Charles and Anne Morrow Lindbergh story, you will probably learn far more than you want to know in Benjamin’s well researched novel.  Much has been written on Lindbergh and most American’s think they know his history, but in most cases that “knowledge” is superficial (see http://www.history.com/news/history-lists/10-fascinating-facts-about-charles-lindbergh and http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/lindbergh/sfeature/fallen.html for a sampling of little know facts).

A few questions that might generate discussion for Thursday night’s meeting:

  1. What is the most significant fact or event in the life of Charles Lindbergh that you didn’t know prior to reading The Aviator’s Wife?
  2. What is the most significant fact or event in the life of Anne Morrow Lindbergh that you didn’t know prior to reading The Aviator’s Wife?
  3. Why do you think that Anne Morrow married Charles Lindbergh? Why do you think Charles married Anne?
  4. What’s your reaction to the Lindbergh’s parenting skills and methods?
  5. Describe the marital relationship between Anne and Charles. Why did it work? What didn’t work?
  6. What clue does the following quote offer about the role of women in the 1930s-1950s? Does the quote apply today? “I was Mom. I was Wife. I was Tragedy. I was Pilot. They all were me, and I, them. That was a fate we could not escape, we women; we would always be called upon by others in a way men simply never were. But weren’t we always, first and foremost —woman? Wasn’t there strength in that, victory, clarity— in all the stages of a woman’s life?” – page 340.
  7. The author suggests “JEALOUSY IS A TERRIBLE THING. It keeps you up at night, it demands tremendous energy in order to remain alive, and so you have to want to feed it, nurture it—and by so wanting, you have to acknowledge that you are a bitter, petty person. It changes you.” – page 333. Do you agree or disagree? How was Anne changed?
  8. How has your view of Lindbergh changed as a result of reading The Aviator’s Wife?

We hope you’ll join us on Thursday evening!

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