The Literature and Language Book Club will meet from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. Saturday, August 15 in Room 3N-6 at Harold Washington Library Center to discuss Love and Treasure by Ayelet Waldman.
Here are some discussion questions from the author's website to consider as you read:
- Love and Treasure is a novel that illuminates the shifting nature of identity. In the beginning of the novel, Jack Wiseman is described as a New York Jew whose father’s parents are of “authentic German Jewish stock,” (18) yet he feels a struggle to connect with both his American soldiers and the European Jews he encounters. How does Jack’s definition of himself change over the course of the novel? How do Jack’s fellow soldiers view him? The Hungarian civilians? What does this say about how cultural heritage is assigned or interpreted?
- Compare and contrast the failed marriages of Amitai and Natalie. How do their failed marriages prepare them for meeting one another? Discuss the symbolism of Natalie wearing the pendant to her wedding to David.
- Gizella and Nina are introduced as strong-willed women who are ahead their time: Nina dreams of medical school, and Gizella is active in radical politics. What challenges do these early feminists face, both from their countrymen and from their families? Why do you think Zobel seeks them out years later?
