Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. A Marriage at Sea is a work of narrative nonfiction, reconstructing a true story with a novelist’s attention to detail. Did you find this journalistic approach compelling for a survival story? Did knowing the account was true from the outset change how you reacted to the Baileys’ ordeal?

2. What single scene or moment from the Baileys’ 118 days adrift has stayed with you the most, and why?

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

1. Maurice and Maralyn were driven by a powerful desire to escape the “formula of suburban domestic stress.” What do you think of their decision to sell everything and pursue a life of radical freedom and self-reliance? Can you relate to the impulse to escape the routines and expectations of modern life?

2. Maralyn used routine as a powerful tool for survival, from rationing food to inventing games. What role do routines and rituals play in your own life, especially during times of stress or uncertainty?

3. Maurice’s decision to sail without a radio was a defining choice rooted in an ideology of complete independence. When have you faced a choice between self-reliance and accepting help or a safety net? What do you see as the potential benefits and risks of each approach?

4. Throughout their ordeal, Maurice and Maralyn display different coping mechanisms, with Maralyn focusing on the future and Maurice ranging between pessimistic and fatalistic. Which of their approaches did you find more understandable, and why?

5. After Maralyn’s death, Maurice turns to writing to preserve her memory. What are your thoughts on how storytelling and remembrance shape our relationships with those we’ve lost?

6. How did you feel about Maurice’s admission that he felt a “strange kind of peace” adrift on the ocean, even alongside the terror? Have you ever experienced peace in an unexpected place?

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

1. The narrative situates the Baileys within the 1970s DIY ocean-cruising movement, an ethos inspired by figures like Eric Hiscock. What does this cultural trend reveal about the values and aspirations of that specific historical moment? How do you think a similar quest for escape might manifest today?

2. Upon their rescue, the Baileys’ private trauma is quickly transformed into a public spectacle and a valuable commodity. How does their story comment on the media’s consumption of personal tragedy, and how have you seen similar dynamics play out in the modern age?

3. Consider the ways in which Maralyn’s leadership on the raft subvert traditional gender roles, especially for the 1970s. How does this portrayal enter into public discourse about gender, power, and leadership?

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

1. Elmhirst begins the book in medias res, with the whale strike, before flashing back to the Baileys’ life story. Why do you think she chose this structure instead of a linear timeline? How did knowing their fate from the beginning shape your reading of their preparations and voyage?

2. The book challenges the popular “lone hero” trope often seen in survival stories like Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild. How does the Baileys’ story of interdependence offer a different perspective on what it means to survive against the odds? 

3. Auralyn and Auralyn II are central to the story. What is the significance of these two boats in charting the evolution of the Baileys’ partnership?

4. The act of writing is a recurring motif, from Maralyn’s diary filled with menus to Maurice’s final memoir. How does Elmhirst use these acts of documentation to explore themes of hope, identity, and memory? What does it suggest about the power of storytelling as a survival tool?

5. This account is a reconstruction written decades after the event, while the Baileys’ own book, 117 Days Adrift, was written shortly after their rescue. What unique insights do you think a biographical account like this can offer that a first-person memoir, written in the immediate aftermath, might not?

6. After the rescue, the narrative perspective broadens to include Captain Suh, the media, and the public. What effect does this shift away from the Baileys’ intense, isolated point of view have on the story’s final act?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. Maralyn’s diary was filled with detailed plans for Auralyn II and elaborate menus for future dinner parties. Imagine you are adrift in a similar situation. What future project, meal, or experience would you design in your mind to keep your hope alive?

2. If you were tasked with creating a small museum exhibit about the Baileys’ ordeal, which five items mentioned in the book would you choose to display? What would each object represent about their journey?