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The Empress of Idaho
LIBRAIRIE CARCAJOU
The Empress of Idaho
De Librairie Carcajou
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Discussion Questions
1. How did reading this story from Adam’s perspective influence the way you view this community of people?
2.“The woman lowered herself from Marv’s pickup truck wearing the first pair of high-heeled shoes I’d ever seen touch Jefferson Street. At contact she lifted one from the gravel like she had stepped into a colony of snails and looked up the sunburned lawn at me.” (p. 3) What does this first description of Beatrice tell you about her? How does your understanding of her character evolve?
3.“Marv Walker of the—what?—New York bloody Yankees? Yet here you are, a fat American labourer like all the millions of other fat American labourers. You do something—what do you do?—in a medical devices factory that—if my sources are correct—could shut down any time and move to Mexico if not China. This is a particularly American disease, wishing upon a star, and frankly it’s below even you.” (p. 18) How does this outburst from Don set the tone of the novel?
4. Are there several possible meanings to the title, The Empress of Idaho, or does the title only refer to the way that Adam sees Beatrice? Why or why not?
5. “Every year at Christmastime our insurance agent stapled a pouch of flower seeds to a desk calendar and hired a girl to put it in the mailbox. With a shaky hand he wrote a passage from the Bible, the same one every year, and included it in the envelope. I remember how it ended: the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land. In 1988, his gift had been a packet of sweet williams.”(p. 3) What’s the significance of this quote from the Bible and the imagery of the sweet williams?
6. The Empress of Idaho is as much about the power of human relationships as it is about betrayal. Discuss the novel’s portrayal of fundamental relationships. What is Adam’s relationship with his mother like? What do you think of Adam’s friendship with Simon?
7. “Men can be pretty damn awful to women. You read about it every day. Men were awful to her, right from when she was little. Maybe she told you all about it. I kinda hope not. There’s stuff I know I’ll never forget. But I fear deep down she came here just to wound me.” (p. 275) This passage from Marv describes Beatrice as a victim and a culprit. Do you think it’s as simple as labelling her one or the other? In which ways does her character make you ask challenging questions about the cycle of sexual abuse?
8. “. . . if we are refugees our children will be refugees, even our children’s children. They may not know it.” (p. 193) What is Mr. Kinoro trying to say about the experience of being a refugee in this passage?
9. The characters in this novel provide a range of views on the ways that sexual assault is addressed in society, from the victim trying to disassociate from the trauma to the mother of the victim trying to help her child get past the trauma. What does Chief Dunn’s point of view bring to the narrative? What did you make of the interaction between Chief Dunn and Adam?
10. How does this novel explore the idea of masculinity? And how does Adam’s understanding of it change over time?”
11. There are a multitude of experiences being unpacked in this novel. What did you learn about coming of age, racism, and socioeconomic status? Has reading this novel influenced the way you look at these complicated experiences?
12. Helen observes, “You never get it back. They take it away from you, that feeling it’s all yours, this is your town, your state, this is your country, your life to build. And it’s gone. For the rest of Simon’s life . . .” (p. 187) How did you react to what happened to Simon?
13. At the end of the novel, did you get the sense that Adam has come to terms with his past and with the trauma of what he experienced?
14. Through characters like Helen, the author weaves together the harsh realities and the beauty in this town, in this story. What is your opinion of Helen? Did your opinion of her change when you found out about her thriving businesses?
15. Discuss the ending of The Empress of Idaho. How did you react to the truth about what happened to Beatrice?
1. How did reading this story from Adam’s perspective influence the way you view this community of people?
2.“The woman lowered herself from Marv’s pickup truck wearing the first pair of high-heeled shoes I’d ever seen touch Jefferson Street. At contact she lifted one from the gravel like she had stepped into a colony of snails and looked up the sunburned lawn at me.” (p. 3) What does this first description of Beatrice tell you about her? How does your understanding of her character evolve?
3.“Marv Walker of the—what?—New York bloody Yankees? Yet here you are, a fat American labourer like all the millions of other fat American labourers. You do something—what do you do?—in a medical devices factory that—if my sources are correct—could shut down any time and move to Mexico if not China. This is a particularly American disease, wishing upon a star, and frankly it’s below even you.” (p. 18) How does this outburst from Don set the tone of the novel?
4. Are there several possible meanings to the title, The Empress of Idaho, or does the title only refer to the way that Adam sees Beatrice? Why or why not?
5. “Every year at Christmastime our insurance agent stapled a pouch of flower seeds to a desk calendar and hired a girl to put it in the mailbox. With a shaky hand he wrote a passage from the Bible, the same one every year, and included it in the envelope. I remember how it ended: the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land. In 1988, his gift had been a packet of sweet williams.”(p. 3) What’s the significance of this quote from the Bible and the imagery of the sweet williams?
6. The Empress of Idaho is as much about the power of human relationships as it is about betrayal. Discuss the novel’s portrayal of fundamental relationships. What is Adam’s relationship with his mother like? What do you think of Adam’s friendship with Simon?
7. “Men can be pretty damn awful to women. You read about it every day. Men were awful to her, right from when she was little. Maybe she told you all about it. I kinda hope not. There’s stuff I know I’ll never forget. But I fear deep down she came here just to wound me.” (p. 275) This passage from Marv describes Beatrice as a victim and a culprit. Do you think it’s as simple as labelling her one or the other? In which ways does her character make you ask challenging questions about the cycle of sexual abuse?
8. “. . . if we are refugees our children will be refugees, even our children’s children. They may not know it.” (p. 193) What is Mr. Kinoro trying to say about the experience of being a refugee in this passage?
9. The characters in this novel provide a range of views on the ways that sexual assault is addressed in society, from the victim trying to disassociate from the trauma to the mother of the victim trying to help her child get past the trauma. What does Chief Dunn’s point of view bring to the narrative? What did you make of the interaction between Chief Dunn and Adam?
10. How does this novel explore the idea of masculinity? And how does Adam’s understanding of it change over time?”
11. There are a multitude of experiences being unpacked in this novel. What did you learn about coming of age, racism, and socioeconomic status? Has reading this novel influenced the way you look at these complicated experiences?
12. Helen observes, “You never get it back. They take it away from you, that feeling it’s all yours, this is your town, your state, this is your country, your life to build. And it’s gone. For the rest of Simon’s life . . .” (p. 187) How did you react to what happened to Simon?
13. At the end of the novel, did you get the sense that Adam has come to terms with his past and with the trauma of what he experienced?
14. Through characters like Helen, the author weaves together the harsh realities and the beauty in this town, in this story. What is your opinion of Helen? Did your opinion of her change when you found out about her thriving businesses?
15. Discuss the ending of The Empress of Idaho. How did you react to the truth about what happened to Beatrice?
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