The Water Keeper

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of sexual violence, child sexual abuse, child abuse, and physical abuse.

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. What is the strongest emotion you felt after finishing the novel? Explain what specific events and/or characters made you feel that way.

2. What was your reaction to Murph choosing to go on his next mission at the end of the novel? Did it surprise you? Explain why or why not based on his character’s actions throughout the text.

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

1. Murph rescues others and writes to cope with his past traumas, Summer uses reading to escape, and Ellie finds support through Summer and Murph. Which of these three characters best matches your way of coping with your own difficult experiences? Explain.

2. Do you agree or disagree with Murph’s assertion, “Belonging comes before identity. Ownership births purpose. Someone speaks whose we are, and out of that we become who we are” (183)? Connect it to your own experiences to justify your response.

3. Despite the novel’s dark themes surrounding trauma and human trafficking, there are several moments in the novel that provide hope to the reader. Choose three moments from the text that made you feel hopeful. What about these moments inspired hope in you? What other emotions did they invoke?

4. What emotion did you feel most strongly at the revelation that Marie was alive? Were you more angry or sympathetic toward her character once she appeared in the novel? Explain why you felt this way.

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

1. What did the novel teach you about human trafficking in the 21st century? Did anything that you learned surprise you? Is there anything about the novel’s handling of the subject matter that you found particularly effective or ineffective in raising awareness?

2. Choose another current issue in society that raises the importance of Valuing the Individual in the Fight Against Evil. Instead of just looking at statistics, choose one specific person who has shared their personal experiences as a survivor and/or fought against this issue. Explain to the rest of the group who the person you chose is and how their own experiences relate to, or differ from, those of the novel’s characters.

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

1. Explain what the title, The Water Keeper, means in the context of the novel. What does water symbolize in the novel? What is the significance of the “keeper”?

2. How does the novel explore the idea of redemption? Choose two characters from Murph, Summer, Clay, Ellie, or Marie and explain how their character development throughout the text conveys this theme.

3. Read Charles Martin’s novel The Mountain Between Us. What role does faith play in this text and in The Water Keeper? How are they different or similar in their handling of faith?

4. The Water Keeper is a thriller and suspense novel. What are some of the common tropes and/or literary techniques from the thriller or action genres that Martin uses?

5. Discuss the interplay between the two themes of The Healing Power of Love and The Lasting Impact of Trauma in the novel. How do these themes complement and inform one another in the text?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. Choose one scene from the past that involves Marie. Write the scene from her perspective, exploring her thoughts and feelings. Be sure to base her characterization on the things that the reader learns about Marie in the novel.

2. Imagine you are in Summer’s position at the moment when Murph meets her. Discuss how you would feel and act in her shoes. How would you react to the situation with your daughter? Would you trust Murph? Would you contact the police? Would you have the courage to look for your daughter? Consider each of these questions in your response.

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