What did you make of the pool, pecan tree and the golden pecans? Why do you suppose Lil never shares their secret with Sasha?

At the center of the orchard – and the book – are the pool, the pecan tree, and the golden pecans. What did you make of these items? What relationship did they have with each other, and what was their significance to the twins, in your opinion? Why do you suppose Lil never shares this special location with Sasha?

At first I thought that Lil didn’t want to share this secret because it was literally the only place she could ever go that was different or out of the ordinary for her. Her life was monotonous-she couldn’t leave the area because she was solely responsible for the orchard. Going to the pond was a break for her-something that was all hers.

Twins have to share so much in their lives, I feel like it is nice for them to have something that only belongs to one of them. Sasha had the tree house…

But the pond was also where she found their mother-dead. I think a part of her wanted to protect Sasha from unnatural aspects of the pond, the tree, and the pecans that may have played a role in their mother’s death.

I thought the golden pecans were an interesting part of the story. I think Lil wanted to both protect her sister and own something that no one else knew.

Even as I reflect on the pool and golden pecans, I am still a little confused of the meaning. I thought getting into the pool was deadly but Lil lures Theon in and she survives. In considering the mother's death earlier, I began to understand why she did want to die because she did not want eternal life.

I still wonder why the mother would want any of her children to experience this kind of life. She chose Lil to continue dealing with the pond, golden pecans, etc. and wanted Sasha to go and have a different life. Why not have both twins go and enjoy life away from this place.

Why did Lil save the mystery of this place? I think she wanted to protect her sister.

When Luz first visited the pool was when I realized the book had such a mystical theme. I still haven’t determined how the pool affected the time