The Seed Keeper

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

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. Which storylines or characters from The Seed Keeper resonated with you most deeply? How did they affect your overall impression of the novel?

2. Wilson weaves together multiple time periods spanning from 1862 to 2002. How did this nonlinear structure impact your reading experience? Did it enhance or complicate your understanding of the characters’ lives and choices? If so, how?

3. How does The Seed Keeper compare to other multigenerational family novels you’ve read, such as Louise Erdrich’s The Night Watchman? What makes Wilson’s approach to family history and cultural preservation distinctive?

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

1. Rosalie struggles with gaps in her identity when her father conceals the truth about her mother. Have you ever discovered family stories that were kept from you? How did learning these stories change your understanding of yourself or your family?

2. Throughout the novel, characters have different Relationships with the Land: Some view the land as something to master and exploit, while others see it as something to respect and protect. How would you describe your own relationship with the natural world? Did this book influence your perspective?

3. When Rosalie returns to her childhood cabin, she reconnects with her heritage through plants, seeds, and traditional practices. What cultural traditions or practices connect you to your own heritage or help give you a sense of belonging?

4. Thomas/Wakpá finds himself caught between two cultural worlds—his mother’s Dakhóta heritage and his father’s farming legacy. Have you ever felt divided between different cultural identities or value systems? What helped you navigate these tensions?

5. The seed keepers in the novel maintain cultural knowledge during times of persecution and displacement. What knowledge or wisdom has been passed down through your family that you feel responsible for preserving?

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

1. The novel portrays the devastating effects of the US-Dakota War of 1862 and the subsequent boarding school era on Indigenous families. How did Wilson’s fictional account deepen your understanding of these historical events beyond what might be taught in traditional textbooks?

2. The Seed Keeper addresses modern agricultural practices, particularly the use of genetically modified seeds and corporate control over farming. In what ways does the novel contribute to contemporary debates about food sovereignty, environmental justice, and corporate power?

3. The reclaiming of the Dakhóta language, names, and cultural practices is a form of resistance in the novel. What examples of cultural reclamation and revival do you see in today’s society? What challenges do these movements face?

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

1. The novel focuses on four generations of Dakhóta women: Marie, Lorraine, Agnes, and Rosalie. How does each woman’s story reveal different aspects of historical trauma and resilience? What patterns or cycles repeat across generations?

2. Water and rivers appear as recurring symbols throughout the novel. How do these symbols function differently for various characters, and what do they reveal about each character’s connection to place and heritage?

3. Wilson uses multiple narrators and time periods to tell her story. How do these different narrative voices contribute to the novel’s themes? Whose perspective did you find most compelling, and why?

4. Birds—particularly crows and blackbirds—appear as symbols throughout the novel. What do these birds represent, and how do they affect the characterization of Rosalie, Marie, and Agnes?

5. Examine the tension between isolation and community in the novel. What drives characters like Rosalie, John, and Gaby to seek connection or solitude at different points in their lives?

6. Wilson’s approach to seeds as carriers of memory and heritage has parallels with the works of other Indigenous writers, like Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer. How do their explorations of plant relationships and cultural knowledge compare? How does Wilson’s portrayal of human-plant relationships challenge conventional thinking?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. If you were to design a seed basket to pass down to future generations, what seeds would you include and why? What stories or knowledge would you want to preserve alongside these seeds?

2. The novel ends with some ambiguity about Thomas’s future path. Write a short scene depicting Thomas five years after the novel’s conclusion. What choices has he made regarding his career, his relationship with Mangenta, and his connection to his Dakhóta heritage?

3. Storytelling is vital to preserving culture in The Seed Keeper. Create a brief oral history about a place that’s significant to you—a hometown, a special landscape, or a family gathering spot. What details would you emphasize to convey its importance to future generations?

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