Sisters Under the Rising Sun

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. The book chronicles both horrific suffering and incredible resilience. Which aspect of the story resonated most strongly with you, and what moments or characters made the greatest impression?

2. How does knowing this novel is based on the detailed testimonies of real women, a method Heather Morris also used in The Tattooist of Auschwitz, change your reading experience? Did it make the story feel more impactful or heavier for you?

3. The narrative shifts between the perspectives of Norah, a civilian mother, and Nesta, a military nurse. How did this narrative structure shape your understanding of the women’s experiences in the camps?

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

1. The voice orchestra becomes a source of spiritual and mental escape for the women. What is it about art and music that allows people to transcend difficult circumstances, and have you ever felt its power in your own life?

2. What did you make of the different leadership styles shown by Nesta, Margaret, and Mrs. Hinch? What qualities do you think make for a successful leader, and where have you observed these qualities in your own life?

3. Margaret Dryburgh advises a despairing woman to “look up” not for a higher power, but to see the sky and trees instead of the mud. What do you think of this advice as a coping mechanism? Have you ever found a simple shift in perspective to be powerful?

4. In what ways does the relationship between Norah, Ena, and the young girl June embody a “chosen family”? Have you ever developed a similarly strong bond with someone to whom you weren’t related? What circumstances facilitated that?

5. The nurses must carry the secret of the Radji Beach Massacre to protect Vivian’s life. If you’ve ever kept a secret for someone else’s sake, what was the experience like? How did you handle the responsibility?

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

1. How does the novel’s focus on female solidarity, community-building, and artistic resistance contribute to or challenge the popular understanding of World War II, a conflict often defined by the stories of male soldiers?

2. The narrative details war crimes like the bombing of the Vyner Brooke and the Radji Beach Massacre, where noncombatants were targeted. How did this depiction of The Indiscriminate Brutality of War affect your view on the conventional rules of conflict?

3. The women in the camps build a self-governing society with committees, a newspaper, and a framework for sharing resources. What can their story teach us about community, leadership, and social responsibility in the face of a large-scale crisis? Where do you see those lessons being relevant today?

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

1. The Prologue and Epilogue both center Norah’s relationship with Sally. How does this emphasis on motherhood illuminate the other bonds between women that the novel depicts?

2. Art and Music as a Form of Spiritual Resistance is one of the novel’s central themes. How would you describe the tone and mood of the scenes of the women singing? What language choices produce that effect?

3. What did you make of the relative flatness of the Japanese soldier characters? Do you think it serves a narrative purpose?

4. Many popular World War II novels, like Kristin Hannah’s The Nightingale (2015), focus on female resistance. How does Morris’s portrayal of collective, communal survival in a prison camp compare to stories that often focus on the more individual actions of women in occupied territories?

5. What is the effect of focusing on two distinct protagonists, Norah and Nesta? How do their different backgrounds (civilian and military) allow the author to explore varied facets of female strength and leadership?

6. Did you notice the narrative pattern where moments of hope, like a successful concert or the planting of a garden, are often followed by an act of cruelty from the captors? What emotional effect did this cyclical structure have on you as a reader?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. If you were commissioned to design a memorial for the women of the Sumatran camps, what key symbols from the book would you incorporate? How would you visually represent their unique forms of resistance, like the voice orchestra or “The Captives’ Hymn”?

2. The Camp Chronicle was created to share news and boost morale using coded language. What kind of piece would you contribute if you were an internee, and what message would you want to send?

3. “The Captives’ Hymn” becomes a powerful anthem for the community. If you were to compose a short poem or song to capture the spirit of a community you belong to, what central theme would you focus on, and why?