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Book club questions for Other Birds by Sarah Addison Allen explore the themes of love, loss, healing, the power of storytelling, and the magical connections that can be forged between unlikely individuals.
Sarah Addison Allen never fails to delight me with her characters and her stories. I have read every single one of her novels, and I just keep coming back for more. If you want a good read you cannot go wrong with any of Sarah Addison Allen’s novels. Looking forward to whatever she writes next.
What were your impressions of this novel? ✨
Other Birds by Sarah Addison Allen
I hope you will enjoy the thoughtfully crafted book club questions tailored for Other Birds in this blog post. Further below you will also find a downloadable PDF version I’ve prepared for your book clubs (available at the bottom of the post), along with supplementary suggestions for books that share similar themes and narratives.
Let me know if you find these book club questions useful. I’m excited to hear your unique perspectives during your book club discussions!
Book Club Questions | Additional Recommendations | Printable List
About the Story
Other Birds follows the story of Zoey Hennessey who arrives to claim her late mother’s apartment at The Dellawisp, a unique building in the coastal town of Mallow Island, South Carolina, inhabited by both humans and magical turquoise birds.
Zoey befriends her quirky neighbors, each with their own stories and longings. However, when a neighbor’s mysterious death occurs on her first night, Zoey is drawn into the secrets of The Dellawisp, involving missing pages from a legendary writer’s work.
As Zoey delves deeper into the mysteries, she, along with her neighbors, must learn to trust each other, confront their deepest fears, and let go of their haunting pasts.
This novel is an enchanting tale of lost souls, lonely strangers, and the healing power of connection in a world where reality and imagination intertwine.
About the Author
Sarah Addison Allen, a New York Times Bestselling novelist, infuses her fiction with the rich flavors of her southern upbringing.
Hailing from Asheville, North Carolina, she grew up loving books and savoring delicious food, inspired by her journalist father and skilled cook mother.
After majoring in literature in college, she made her mark with her debut novel, Garden Spells in 2007. Despite overcoming late-stage breast cancer at 39, she continued to write bestselling novels, earning a global following for her “southern-fried magic realism.”
With titles like The Sugar Queen, The Girl Who Chased the Moon, and her release of Other Birds, which we’re covering in this blog post, translated into over 30 languages, Sarah’s captivating stories endure.
Book Club Questions for Other Birds
Disclaimer: the following discussion questions contain spoilers, so proceed with caution if you haven’t finished the book yet.
- Zoey’s search for a sense of home after her mother’s passing is a central theme. What does the idea of home mean to Zoey, and how does it evolve throughout the story? Reflect on your own concept of home; is it defined by a place, the people, or something else?
- Zoey’s neighbors in The Dellawisp are a unique and eccentric group who become her chosen family. Which character in the book do you relate to the most, and is that character also your favorite? Share your reasons for your choice.
- The novel explores the concept of “other birds,” as mentioned in Chapter 10. Who are the “other birds” in the story, and how does this bird imagery impact your understanding of the characters and their journeys? Discuss the significance of the Dellawisps and the role the birds play in the narrative.
- Zoey and Oliver both embark on journeys of self-discovery and growth when they leave home for Mallow Island. Reflect on the themes of self-discovery and personal growth in the book. How do Zoey and Oliver change over the course of the story, and how do these changes affect their relationships with others?
- The Dellawisp, the building where most of the story takes place, has a magical and whimsical aura. How did the setting contribute to your reading experience? Did it feel like a place you’d want to visit or live in? Why or why not?
- The book explores the theme of found family, where characters come together to form deep connections and support one another. Discuss how the concept of found family is depicted in the novel. Are there specific moments or relationships that highlight the importance of this theme?
- The presence of ghosts in the story adds an element of the supernatural. How did the inclusion of ghostly characters enhance the overall narrative? Did you find their stories compelling, and if so, which ghost’s story intrigued you the most?
- How did you perceive the balance between the magical elements and the emotional depth of the story? Did the magical elements enhance or detract from the themes of loss, healing, and friendship?
- Charlotte’s journey involves escaping a troubled past and reinventing herself. How did her character evolve throughout the story, and how did her experiences impact the other characters in the Dellawisp? Did you predict the twist related to Charlotte’s character?
- The novel includes chapters from the perspective of various ghosts. How do these ghostly perspectives enhance your reading experience, and how would the story be different without them? Consider what the ghosts symbolize, both literally and metaphorically, for the characters.
- Food plays a significant role in the story, connecting characters and their memories. For example, Mac expresses love through cooking. How do you express love, and what role does food play in your life? Share personal experiences or connections you have with food and relationships.
- “Other Birds” incorporates elements of magical realism. In what ways is the concept that “invisible does not always mean imaginary” evident in the novel? Do you agree with this idea? Share any personal experiences where reality and imagination intertwined in your life.
- Consider the importance of names and identity in the book. Charlotte, for instance, changes her name as she escapes her past. How does a name relate to one’s identity? Discuss the significance of names for characters like Roscoe/Frasier and Paloma/Pigeon and how it connects to their identities. What does your name mean to you?
- Each character in the novel has a complex past that shapes their present. Reflect on how your own past has influenced your current self and circumstances. Share personal stories or experiences related to the impact of your past on your present.
- The revelation about Pigeon being Paloma’s spirit guarding Zoey is a significant moment in the story. How did this revelation change your perception of Pigeon’s role in the narrative? Discuss the importance of Pigeon’s presence before and after this revelation.
- Mallow Island serves as a vivid and integral setting in the book. Did you find the island’s portrayal realistic, and would you like to visit such a place? Share your thoughts on the surprising origin of the name “marshmallows” as revealed in the story.
- In Chapter 9, Zoey discovers four highlighted passages in Lizbeth’s copy of “Sweet Mallow.” Discuss which of these lines resonates with you the most and why. Share your interpretations and personal connections to these passages.
- “Sweet Mallow” is a book within the book. Consider the themes present in both “Sweet Mallow” and “Other Birds.” Did the introduction of “Sweet Mallow” make you want to read it? Share your thoughts on the interplay between these two stories.
- Some readers found certain aspects of the story, such as Zoey’s character development or the pacing of the ending, to be areas of interest. Share your thoughts on these aspects and whether you agree or disagree with their assessments.
- The book’s cover and title are often the first things that draw readers in. How well do you think the cover and title represent the essence of the story? Did they align with your expectations for the book?
Additional Recommendations
Hope you enjoyed the book club discussion questions and reading guide for Other Birds by Sarah Addison Allen!
Here are some more of my book club recommendations related to this book:
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
Chemist Elizabeth Zott is not your average woman. In fact, Elizabeth Zott would be the first to point out that there is no such thing as an average woman. But it’s the early 1960s and her all-male team at Hastings Research Institute takes a very unscientific view of equality. Except for one: Calvin Evans; the lonely, brilliant, Nobel–prize nominated grudge-holder who falls in love with—of all things—her mind. True chemistry results.
But like science, life is unpredictable. Which is why a few years later Elizabeth Zott finds herself not only a single mother, but the reluctant star of America’s most beloved cooking show Supper at Six. Elizabeth’s unusual approach to cooking (“combine one tablespoon acetic acid with a pinch of sodium chloride”) proves revolutionary. But as her following grows, not everyone is happy. Because as it turns out, Elizabeth Zott isn’t just teaching women to cook. She’s daring them to change the status quo.
Laugh-out-loud funny, shrewdly observant, and studded with a dazzling cast of supporting characters, Lessons in Chemistry is as original and vibrant as its protagonist.
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
For fans of A Man Called Ove, a charming, witty and compulsively readable exploration of friendship, reckoning, and hope that traces a widow’s unlikely connection with a giant Pacific octopus
After Tova Sullivan’s husband died, she began working the night shift at the Sowell Bay Aquarium, mopping floors and tidying up. Keeping busy has always helped her cope, which she’s been doing since her eighteen-year-old son, Erik, mysteriously vanished on a boat in Puget Sound over thirty years ago.
Tova becomes acquainted with curmudgeonly Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus living at the aquarium. Marcellus knows more than anyone can imagine but wouldn’t dream of lifting one of his eight arms for his human captors—until he forms a remarkable friendship with Tova.
Ever the detective, Marcellus deduces what happened the night Tova’s son disappeared. And now Marcellus must use every trick his old invertebrate body can muster to unearth the truth for her before it’s too late.
Shelby Van Pelt’s debut novel is a gentle reminder that sometimes taking a hard look at the past can help uncover a future that once felt impossible.
Tom Lake by Ann Patchett
In this beautiful and moving novel about family, love, and growing up, Ann Patchett once again proves herself one of America’s finest writers.
In the spring of 2020, Lara’s three daughters return to the family’s orchard in Northern Michigan. While picking cherries, they beg their mother to tell them the story of Peter Duke, a famous actor with whom she shared both a stage and a romance years before at a theater company called Tom Lake.
As Lara recalls the past, her daughters examine their own lives and relationship with their mother, and are forced to reconsider the world and everything they thought they knew.
Tom Lake is a meditation on youthful love, married love, and the lives parents have led before their children were born. Both hopeful and elegiac, it explores what it means to be happy even when the world is falling apart.
As in all of her novels, Ann Patchett combines compelling narrative artistry with piercing insights into family dynamics. The result is a rich and luminous story, told with profound intelligence and emotional subtlety, that demonstrates once again why she is one of the most revered and acclaimed literary talents working today.
To read my review of this book, click here.
For my book club questions and printable reading guide for this book, click here.
Printable PDF
Feel free to distribute these discussion questions to your book club members before your meeting. Simply click the link below to download and print the PDF file.
Happy reading! ❤️