CONVERSATION GUIDE
QUESTIONS
FOR DISCUSSION
1. What does Helen’s blindness symbolize in the book? Would she play the same role if she weren’t blind?
2. Why does Lillian keep all the blinds and draperies closed at Asphodel?
3. What does the garden mean to Lillian? To Annabelle? To Piper?
4. If Piper had told the truth about who she was when she first arrived at Asphodel, what would Lillian’s reaction have been?
5. Why do Piper and Helen form such a quick bond?
6. Annabelle tells Piper that history books are filled with men’s stories of battles won and lost, but that women tell the stories of people’s hearts. Do you agree?
7. What do the “old gentlemen” (the alley of oak trees) symbolize?
8. Why did Annabelle never talk about her past to Piper? What was she trying to tell Piper when she left Piper the gold angel charm?
9. Lillian claims that she doesn’t believe in regret. Why? Do you agree with her reasoning?
10. In the beginning of the book, Piper is despondent, unmotivated, and essentially lonely. How does she change by the end of the book? What elements of her character were there all along and only rediscovered?
11. Lillian’s secret, when it’s revealed, is devastating to Piper and Helen, but they ultimately forgive her. Were Lillian’s actions justified? Would Annabelle have forgiven her?