Warlight

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. Was the novel easy to follow? Did the non-linear structure, poetic style, and mysterious characters elucidate the novel’s themes or interfere with them?

2. Was the ending satisfying or frustrating? What do you think was Nathaniel’s goal, and did he achieve it?

3. What genre(s) would you choose to characterize the book? Which elements of these genres does the novel borrow and/or subvert?

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

1. Do you relate to Nathaniel’s assessment of memories as reconstructions? Are there stories about your past hold significance even though they may not be factual, accurate, or provable?

2. Do you agree with the novel’s depiction of identity as ultimately unknowable? What kinds of documents, photographs, and artifacts do you preserve? Do they adequately reflect your identity?

3. Nathaniel’s central mystery is the identity of his mother. What is required to understand a person across generations? To what degree do you feel that you really know your own parents or parental figures? 

4. Nicknames and pseudonyms are pervasive in the novel and can be a token of affection or unfamiliarity. Do you have a nickname or know others who go by another name? What do the nicknames signify?

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

1. How does the novel’s depiction of post-World War II trauma compare to contemporary discussions of mental health, intergenerational trauma, and collective trauma?

2. Were you aware of civilian espionage during World War II? Have you encountered other untold stories of civilian contributions to society? How does society acknowledge these hidden or marginalized stories?

3. Both Rose Williams and Agnes Street end up romantically involved with older men who were father/authority figures when they were young. How did these depictions address power dynamics and gender roles?

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

1. Is Nathaniel a reliable narrator? How do his shifts in perspective and chronology reflect the novel’s theme of memory as storytelling? How does the narrative in Warlight compare to Ondaatje’s narrative structure in The English Patient?

2. Eclectic characters populate the novel and impact Nathaniel’s isolated upbringing. Choose two characters and examine what lessons they taught Nathaniel. How have these lessons guided Nathaniel in his adulthood?

3. Literary critic Hermione Lee calls Warlight a “novel of chiaroscuro.” Examine the motif of light and darkness in the novel. How do they relate to the themes of secrecy, identity, and memory?

4. Animals appear throughout the novel, such as the smuggled greyhounds, the bird calls, the creatures in Hardy’s poem, the cat in Nathaniel’s repressed memory, and the nocturnal sounds during Olive’s night walk. What do the animals symbolize? How do they accentuate the novel’s themes of empathy and vulnerability?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. If you were to create a collage of your identity, what would you include and why? Are the pieces you would assemble related and chronological, or do they follow their own logic?

2. Have you visited an archive before? What were your expectations and how was your experience? If you cannot visit one in person, consider visiting online archival exhibitions and collections such as those hosted by the National Archives, the Library of Congress, and other archives at museums, universities, galleries, and libraries. Choose a digital collection and discuss your impressions. Do archives complete a story or do they hold biases and silences? Are archives objective and neutral?