57 pages • 1-hour read
My Dark Vanessa
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Book Club Questions
General Impressions
Content Warning: This section of the guide contains discussion of sexual violence and harassment, child sexual abuse, emotional abuse, and sexual content.
Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.
1. What did you think about the dual timeline structure that alternates between 15-year-old and 30-year-old Vanessa throughout the novel? Did you relate to one age more than the other?
2. In what ways does My Dark Vanessa compare to Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita, which is referenced throughout the book as a significant touchpoint for both Strane and Vanessa? If you haven’t read Lolita, are you more or less interested in doing so after experiencing this novel?
3. Which scenes or aspects of the novel did you find most challenging to read?
Personal Reflection and Connection
Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.
1. For much of the novel, Vanessa insists that her relationship with Strane was a love story rather than abuse. Do you think this kind of reframing can ever be a healthy coping mechanism? Why or why not?
2. Which books have influenced your understanding of relationships in a significant way? How so?
3. What responsibilities do you think parents and teachers have in protecting young people from predatory behavior like Strane’s?
4. What was your reaction to Vanessa’s conversation with Taylor Birch near the end of the novel?
5. Which character in the novel did you find yourself most sympathetic toward?
Societal and Cultural Context
Examine the book’s relevance to societal issues, historical events, or cultural themes.
1. In what ways have movements like #MeToo shifted cultural understandings of relationships like the one between Vanessa and Strane? How have societal views on relationships with significant age gaps or power disparities evolved since the time periods depicted in the novel?
2. Which aspects of Vanessa’s isolation from peers and family made her particularly vulnerable to Strane’s manipulation? What systemic changes would better protect young people in educational settings from predators like Strane?
Literary Analysis
Dive into the book’s structure, characters, themes, and symbolism.
1. How does the novel’s title, taken from Nabokov’s Pale Fire, relate to Vanessa’s character and journey?
2. Which techniques does Russell use to indicate the unreliability of Vanessa’s perspective and memories?
3. How does the natural imagery throughout the novel deepen your understanding of Vanessa’s character?
4. What do the dogs in the novel represent in relation to Vanessa’s emotional journey?
5. In what ways does Vanessa’s relationship with literature evolve throughout the story? How does this impact the novel’s overall meaning?
6. How does the alternating timeline structure create dramatic irony? How does this affect your understanding of Vanessa’s experiences?
Creative Engagement
Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.
1. If you were to write an epilogue for My Dark Vanessa set five years after the novel ends, what would happen to Vanessa?
2. If you could create a symbolic object or companion for another character in the novel, what would it be?
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