A Council of Dolls

Content Warning: This section of the guide contains discussion of racism.

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. What was your initial reaction to Power’s use of talking dolls as a central storytelling device in a novel about historical trauma? Did your reaction change as the story developed? If so, how?

2. The novel moves backward in time through Parts 1-3 before concluding with Jesse’s present in Part 4. Did this structure enhance your understanding of intergenerational trauma?

3. If you’ve read Power’s earlier novel The Grass Dancer, how does her approach to Indigenous spirituality differ between the two works? For those unfamiliar with her other work, which novels with magical elements reminded you of A Council of Dolls?

Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.

1. The dolls in the novel serve as confidants and protectors for their owners. Did you have an object from childhood that took on special significance?

2. Jesse struggles with “teetering between my spirit self and my skeptical self” (219). Where in your life do you experience tension between rationality and spirituality?

3. Characters throughout the novel must maintain their cultural identity while surviving in a society demanding assimilation. When have you felt pressured to set aside aspects of your identity to fit into a particular environment?

4. In the novel, trauma cycles through generations until Jesse begins to heal. What factors in your experience help break cycles of pain in families or communities?

5. The ancestor spirit keeps her wounds open to ensure that painful history isn’t forgotten. How do you balance remembering difficult truths versus allowing wounds to heal in your own life?

6. Jesse’s breakthrough under the moonlight represents a moment of profound transformation. Reflect on a time when you experienced a sudden clarity that helped you process a long-held misunderstanding.

Examine the book’s relevance to societal issues, historical events, or cultural themes.

1. What surprised you most about the novel’s portrayal of Indigenous boarding schools like Carlisle Indian Industrial School? Did it change your understanding of the issues faced by Indigenous people today?

2. The novel depicts various forms of cultural erasure through language suppression, religious conversion, and forced removal from ancestral lands. Where do you see similar dynamics playing out in today’s world?

3. Consider how this novel’s historical context shapes your understanding of contemporary Indigenous activism. What connections do you see between the struggles depicted in the book and current movements for land rights or cultural preservation?

Dive into the book’s structure, characters, themes, and symbolism.

1. Water appears throughout the novel as both destroyer and healer. What role does this element play in connecting the generations of women?

2. The wounded ancestor spirit appears to both Cora and Jesse with unhealed injuries. In what ways does this character remind you of the ghost in Toni Morrison’s Beloved?

3. Each protagonist experiences shifts in her name and identity throughout the novel. What statement does Power make about naming and its relationship to personal power?

4. Power frequently personifies nature when describing characters’ emotions and experiences. What does this stylistic choice reveal about Dakhóta worldviews?

5. The dolls serve simultaneously as characters and symbols. What aspects of memory and ancestral wisdom do they represent that human characters cannot?

6. Jesse’s journey toward healing involves reconnecting with her heritage and embracing her Dakhóta name. What does the novel suggest about cultural reconnection as a path to personal wholeness?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. If you were designing a doll representing your own life story and ancestral connections, what materials and symbols would you incorporate?

2. Create a meaningful name for yourself in the spirit of Jesse’s Dakhóta name, “Woman Whose Good Works Bring Flowers.” What story would accompany this name?

3. Imagine organizing a council between the dolls in this novel and significant objects from your own life. What wisdom might they exchange about preserving memory and finding healing?

Need more inspiration for your next meeting? Browse all of our Book Club Resources