Book Club Discussion Questions

Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!

1. Willie is already a well-known and celebrated author when he arrives in Penang, but his story is not the main focus of the novel. What is Willie's role in the novel? In what way does his story underscore the stories of the other characters'?
2. Lesley is critical that Willie writes only about unhappy marriages and adultery. Why do you think she takes this view? How do her own experiences tie into this criticism, and do you think she sincerely believes it?
3. What transpires between Willie and Lesley the night of Noel's party? What made Lesley's attitude towards him shift and decide to make Willie her confidante?
4. Lesley asks herself if her life would have been different if she'd asked Robert at the beginning of their courtship why he left London and moved so far away. Do you think he would have revealed enough of his true self to her if she had? Are there unasked questions in your life that would have changed its course?
5. After Ah Peng learns of Robert's affair, she tells Lesley "no man can bring you sorrow, only yourself." What do you think she means by this? Do you agree with her?
6. Why is Ethel Proudlock's murder trial so important to this story? What parallels do you see between her story and Lesley's?
7. When Ethel stays with Lesley and Robert on her way back to England she tells Lesley, "I had no choice. He made me do it." Two decades pass before Robert reveals to Lesley exactly what Ethel meant. Do you think Ethel truly had no choice? Does Ethel's lack of choice have echoes in our own time?
8. What does this novel suggest are the repercussions of repressed sexuality and repressed homosexuality more specifically? What are the repercussions in the book of using marriage to cover up your sexual identity?
9. Despite being a colonizer herself, Lesley is inspired by Sun Yat Sen's quest for equality for all and joins the cause. On what other occasions in the book does Lesley seem to contradict herself? Does she ever acknowledge these contradictions?
10. In what ways does Lesley seek and find independence within her marriage? Do you consider her someone who has control of her life ultimately or not?
11. Almost every character in this book has a secret and no one is exactly as they appear. What are examples of these dualities? How do the doors that Arthur collects relate to this?
12. Willie wonders if the hamsa's protection will turn into the curse of old age, leaving him alone and forgotten. What did the hamsa come to mean to Lesley and Arthur? Do they see it as a protection or a curse?
13. Why doesn't Lesley take Robert offer to stay in Penang with the house while he goes to New Zealand? What do you make of her choice to remain with Robert?
14. Early in the book during their visit to the cemetery, Leslie remarks that "for a woman to be remembered she has to either be a queen or a whore." Do you think Lesley feels the same way when we reach the end of the novel?

Unless otherwise stated, this discussion guide is reprinted with the permission of Bloomsbury Press. Any page references refer to a USA edition of the book, usually the trade paperback version, and may vary in other editions.