Book Club Discussion Questions for The Deadwood Beetle by Mylene Dressler

1. Loss ripples through this novel. How, in the end, does loss create its opposite?
   
2. History has a force all its own in this novel. Would you say Tristan has free will or is he trapped by forces beyond his control?
   
3. In this novel, religion and religious beliefs often have negative associations. Is religion or religious belief also a positive thing? Is the author asking where redemption and forgiveness come from?
   
4. How does the theme of difference/being different work in this novel? How about the theme of connecting?
   
5. This novel deals with what cripples bodies and hearts. How are Tristan and Sandor's situations parallel or different? What does Dressler seem to suggest is most crippling? What does she offer as a balm?
   
6. In some ways, this is a novel about academia. How does it present the intellectual life?
   
7. Is this a love story?
   
8. Craft is as important to this novel as the plot—as is often true for books. But why is this especially the case here?
   
9. Cora wants the table to serve as a reminder and warning. In the end, has it?

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