The Dovekeepers

Content Warning: This section of the guide contains discussion of death by suicide, gender discrimination, death by suicide, and death.

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. Which woman’s narrative in The Dovekeepers affected you most deeply, and what aspects of her story resonated with you?

2. Hoffman’s portrayal of ancient Masada shares themes of resistance and resilience with her novel The World That We Knew, set during the Holocaust. What similarities or differences did you notice in how characters in both books maintain hope in seemingly hopeless situations?

3. What emotions surfaced for you during the final siege of Masada, when Ben Ya’ir calls for mass death by suicide while Yael and Revka choose survival?

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

1. The women of the dovecotes form strong bonds despite their different backgrounds and initial suspicions of one another. When have you formed unexpected connections with people who were initially strangers to you?

2. Throughout the novel, characters navigate the tension between fate and free will in their decisions. In what ways do you balance accepting circumstances versus taking action to change them in your own life?

3. Which character’s form of courage speaks to you most strongly, and why?

4. What stories, traditions, or knowledge have been passed down in your family or community that you find as meaningful as Shirah’s book of spells was to Yael?

5. Many characters in The Dovekeepers find themselves transformed by experiences of loss, violence, and love. Consider a significant life experience that transformed your understanding of yourself or your worldview.

6. Both Yael and Shirah develop powerful connections with elements of nature—animals and water, respectively. What element of the natural world do you feel particularly connected to?

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

1. The Dovekeepers portrays a society where women’s magic is deemed sinister while men’s religious practices are considered holy. Where do you see similar double standards regarding gender operating in contemporary society?

2. What parallels can you draw between the Jewish struggle to maintain cultural identity under Roman occupation and modern communities fighting to preserve their cultures under external pressures?

3. Examine how Hoffman’s feminist retelling of the Siege of Masada challenges traditional historical accounts of this event that focus primarily on male warriors and leaders.

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

1. How does Hoffman use animal symbolism throughout the novel? What do lions, doves, and dogs symbolize, and how does their symbolism develop across the narrative?

2. Water emerges as a powerful symbol throughout the text, associated with Shirah’s magical abilities and ultimately saving some characters’ lives. What different transformations does water represent in the novel?

3. In what ways does the blending of history and magical realism reflect the worldview of the characters living in ancient Judea?

4. The title of each protagonist’s section defines her in relation to men, except for Shirah’s “The Witch of Moab.” What statement might Hoffman be making about women’s identities through this pattern and its exception?

5. Consider the significance of Yael claiming Shirah’s identity at the novel’s end when speaking to General Silva.

6. The novel presents various approaches to faith, from the Essenes’ pacifist fatalism to the Zealots’ violent resistance to Shirah’s feminine magic. What does this spectrum suggest about different relationships to spirituality?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. If you were to add a fifth section to The Dovekeepers from another character’s perspective, whose voice would you include? What would this new voice add to the story? 

2. Imagine you are one of the surviving characters settling in Alexandria at the novel’s end. Write a brief letter to one of the characters who died at Masada.

3. The book of spells passed from Shirah to Yael contains women’s practical knowledge and magic. What wisdom, recipes, remedies, or practices would you include in a modern equivalent of this book?

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