I had been excited to read this book for months because I just kept hearing about it everywhere. I swear I saw this book recommended about a million times before I actually had the chance to crack it up and give it a read. I’ve been traveling over the past couple of days to our vacation spot in beautiful Costa Rica, and I’ve been glued to my Kindle, finishing up this book on the flights. I’m excited to hear what you thought!
If you haven’t finished the book yet, fair warning: this discussion will likely contain SPOILERS. So beware.
I must say, I was pretty surprised by this book. I was not expecting such a young protagonist to be thrust into such difficult/adult situations. I had a hard time putting myself in Theo’s shoes because he experiences circumstances that are so far beyond my own. Both of my parents are still living and actively involved in my life, and I can’t imagine losing them at his age.Â
I’d love to hear what you thought of this month’s book. You can comment on the following discussion points. Feel free to reference the number if you like. Or you are welcome to bring up new discussion points or ideas.
1. Probably the most obvious question that we must discuss first is what is the goldfinch? What does the painting represent in Theo’s life (or in general)?
2. What do you think of the Barbour family? They take Theo in after his mother’s death, but do you get the feeling that they resent this effort, or not? What do you think of their reaction to Theo later in life?
3. What do you think of the way fellow peers and adults treat Theo after his mother’s death? Were you surprised by some of their reactions? Have you ever experienced anything similar (from either side)? I remember a young man losing his home (by a house fire) when I was in middle school, and I remember having no idea what to say to him to communicate that I cared, but I couldn’t really do anything for him. It’s a tough feeling, so I could understand some of the students simply choosing to avoid Theo.
4. What about the role of chaos in this book. Do you think the world is chaotic and full of experiences that we cannot have control over (like the explosion that killed Theo’s mother)? Do the characters in the book feel this way? How does it shape the choices of their lives?
5. I don’t usually ask this, as I often think it’s assumed, but did you like the book? Did you stay up all night reading it, or did you find it a chore? One of my favorite things about this book club experience is seeing how others react to a book, often in different ways than me.Â
Let us know your thoughts, and don’t forget to get your copy of The Good Luck of Right Now if you plan to join in on the ABM book club next month. xo. Emma
Credits // Author: Emma Chapman. Photography: Sarah Rhodes.Â
I just finished to read the Goldfinch and I love it ! Most of all I liked to Read how is developing Boris and Theo connection!
I am, Claudia!! But I am about to take off to the US for 3 months!
I am shocked at how many people like Boris. Yeah, he’s the kind of friend a boy like Theo would have in his teen years, I get that and I get that they rebelled together but I feel like even if Boris stayed on the path of drugs, womanizing and crime that Theo honestly got away and had the perfect chance to grow up, but ultimately didn’t. At some point, Theo was an adult and as such the Amsterdam situation felt off-track, or even him continuing on with Boris later in life.
I wished Theo had a turning point moment in the book where I started to see a wanting to be better, but instead I just felt by the end that I didn’t really care what happened to him so to speak.
I read The Goldfinch last month, not knowing it was a book club selection and I would say overall, I enjoyed it, I never thought of giving up on the book but I also felt very conflicted.
I understand the “Chaos theory”, that Theo went though a series of traumatic events, he lots his home, was shuffled from place to place and lost his parents, and I get that that could lead to rebellion, particularly because he felt like an outside amongst his family (I may have uttered some inappropriate words aloud about Xandra) and friends but I also feel like there was a point where Theo needed to grow up. It was at the point where Theo leaves and goes to Amsterdam that I realized I was “done”, I’d written off the main character and I realized that I just didn’t like him anymore, he was a man-child.
I feel like Theo was an unappreciative, Negative and selfish person. Theo had many rough times, and most of them weren’t his fault but (and maybe this is me not relating to the character on any kind of real world level other than I also live in Vegas) I felt like he also took advantage of the people around him that were positive. Hobie, The Barbers… he could have done right, he had a choice to make and he went for the self destructive and the path that he knew would cause harm or at least potentially could cause harm to good people.
This book was a page turner for sure, and like I said, I enjoyed it but towards the end just found myself disgusted by the main character and his unwillingness/unwantingness to be an adult.
1. I feel like the goldfinch represented the one thing that was unchanging in Theo’s life – his life was so chaotic and unstable (even before his mother died, with his father being a drunk and eventually leaving them), the painting was something he could cling to, something that never changed. I also think that maybe he viewed it as a sort of “link” to his mother – it was representative of the last experience they shared together before she died.
2. I was indifferent towards the Barbours at first. I felt like they were just nice enough that they couldn’t in good conscience turn away Theo when he showed up, but that’s where the kindness ended. They seemed to be too wrapped up in their own problems at the time to really care. It felt like they just sort of tolerated him being there, and they certainly didn’t seem to have a problem with his clearly unstable father/girlfriend coming to take Theo away. The Barbours were redeemed for me later in the book when Theo is an adult, of course, but they were far from perfect in my mind.
4. I do tend to think the world is chaotic and full of experiences that we have no control over – and, to an extent, I feel that this can have an influence on our choices (and thus the choices of the characters in the book). I definitely got the impression that Theo feels this way, all the way up to the end of the book. I also find it interesting that, while Theo and Pippa were involved in the same catastrophe, both having lost a loved one, causing their lives to turn upside down, Pippa still found a measure of success and happiness while Theo drowned in self-pity and guilt (and self-destruction) his whole life. In that respect, I feel like their choices are what made the difference in their respective lives. Theo certainly could’ve chosen to not get involved with drugs, but during that time in the desert when all he had was Boris, it almost seemed inevitable. His lack of parental involvement, of people who loved him and cared about him, basically the lack of people who gave a damn about him all led to some of the poorer choices he made. So, while I do think we’re responsible for our own choices in life, I also feel like the situation surrounding us, and the people looking after us (or lack thereof) can have some impact as well. I think an important lesson to be learned from this book is that teen years are a formidable, impressionable time – it’s so very, very important to have someone (a parent, a mentor, a relative, etc.) who cares about you and has your best interests at heart, there to guide you and give you advice. That was a huge piece missing from Theo’s life and I don’t think it’s a coincidence that he made some of the poor decisions that he did during his time in the desert – poor decisions that followed him into adulthood and, essentially, shaped his entire life and character.
5. I was completely unable to put this book down – I finished it in less than a week, and it stayed with me for a long time afterward. It’s hard to put into words exactly what it was about this book that I found so compelling – perhaps that it was just so unashamedly raw, in every sense of the word. The author didn’t hold back from the uglier parts of Theo’s life; we were right there with him through everything, and I think that’s part of what I loved about it. I also loved how the painting was woven throughout the book and how it seemed to have such a huge influence over everything he did, right up until the end.
I could not agree more with your thoughts on #1. That is my same feelings on the The Goldfinch.
Wow, i’m glad i stumbled upon this. I had forgotten until seeing this post that I read a great book by Donna Tartt years ago called “The Secret History”. It was a great read and I’ve told my husband that we should read it together. I will go get this book a.s.a.p..
I think that the redeeming quality of Boris is this: he was there for Theo when no one else was. He was a bad influence, and I wouldn’t want him or anyone like him to befriend my children… but his love was pure. He was probably the only person in Theo’s life for a long time that actually did love him. I think their cultural differences are what made his less endearing qualities seem ok in the end. 🙂
I really enjoyed this book. I loved Boris. I don’t know why, because truthfully he’s a really awful influence on Theo. Like.. drugs. so many drugs! But I loved him, and when he was absent for those years in Theo’s life after he moved back to NYC, I missed him.
I really wish the book had gone on to let us know how the rest of the characters had ended up.
I genuinely loved ‘The Goldfinch’.
a) The story is captivating, I read the book in five days or so because I just couldn’t put it away. I even had to read the end again because I read it wayyyy to fast the first time…
b) The character portrayal is amazing. Except from Hobie all the characters have good and bad characteristics/sides and are far from one-dimensional. While Hobie is the ‘nicest’ character and I loved him, he might be the weakest, because he just seems so good.
I think it’s really interesting that so may of you really loved Boris. While he is a great literary character I really didn’t like him at all. Sure, he gave Theo feelings of friendship (even love) and warmth, but then again he introduced him to all the drugs. I hardly could bear reading the Las-Vegas-chapter with the two of them being drugged all of the time. For me it was the saddest part of the book and I kept asking: ‘Why are you doing this? Why? Why?’ I think this is a personal thing: people doing drugs really freaks me out. I don’t know why. Somehow, even though I know that Theo is to blame for a lot of things that happen because HE DECIDES to do them, I blame Boris for most of it and just feel so sorry for Theo.
c) I jsut have to mention this: I think that Donna Tartt’s language and her style of writing are superb!
Better late than never….I’m having a love/hate relationship with this book. I feel as though there was too much fluff. As soon as I was becoming interested in a new scenario the author would go off on an overly detailed tangent. The story itself is great, but I wouldn’t add it to my re-read list! I would still recommend it to an avid reader. Especially so I could hear their take on the book. I loved the Harry Potter connection comment above. It’s amazing to read others perception of the same book !
Hi ladies,
I just wanted to say that I tried the lemon wedge jello recipe and LOVED IT. Phenomenal idea, and love your photography as always. I had written something in a little more detail but it didn’t post for some reason. Have a great week everyone.
Hi ladies,
Thank you for sharing your recipe on jello lemon wedges. I saw your post a while back on lime jello wedges, and loved the idea then, but didn’t have the time to try it out. Seriously, you all are so creative! I keep coming back to your blog because you have great ideas, they are so well executed, and beautifully photographed and styled. Thank you for all the colorful cheer you’ve added to my life all these years!
I digress. I just HAD to make the lemon wedges. They just looked so bright, cheery, refreshing, and delicious, seemed so apt for spring/summer, and hit a note of whimsy that resonated with me. Well, they were amazing! I am making more! Thank you!
I am a new reader of your blog, and didn’t know you ran a book club until now. I just purchased The Good Luck of Right Now the other day (completely unrelated) so am now really excited about participating in next month’s discussion! (as a side note, I also have The Gold Finch waiting to be read.)
Kass hall.. coincidence, didn’t see your post when I wrote mine. We think the same, as well Gone girl was another one, which looking back wasn’t that bad. Are you in Australia as me? Im in melbourne…
Love your rug and didn’t read too much of the post because I might end up reading this book!
4. Chaos. I spent a good chunk of a car ride with my husband rambling about my thoughts on this book. I never do that. I just couldn’t stop thinking. I was telling him about how it really makes you think. Life can be about living and doing everything “right” and not rocking the boat. Or you can close your eyes, run, and see what hits you. Boris is like this. And Theo is unknowingly like this. And they have a life that seems to give me a panic attack because it is so chaotic. But is their life really so far away from what our lives COULD be, good or bad? Not really. When you push aside a bit of the rules and perfection, you get all sorts of chaos streaming in.
5. This book threw me for a loop. I loved it. But usually when I love a book, I stay up all night reading. This one, I HAD to take breaks. I was so overwhelmed by the drugs and the tragedy that I needed days to take deep breaths. Then, I would pick it up and carry on. I cried when it was all over because it took me almost a whole month to read, ingraining the characters into my life for a month. When it was over, it was like that part of my life popped and was gone.
2. I felt bad for the Barbours. They didn’t ask for Theo to come into their lives the way he did, yet they embraced him the best they could. They didn’t change their personalities because a young boy suddenly was living with them. They were still themselves, yet they weren’t pushing him out (Mrs. Barbour was cold but she also had a husband with a strew of mental problems and kids with a myriad of personalities and problems…and then another teen dumped on her). Later in life they realized how much of an impact Theo had on them. I guess when you don’t see someone for several years (early in the book he said he hadn’t been friends with Andy for a few years) and then they’re dumped on you 24/7 via tragedy, you don’t really know what to do. There are no rule books here. And then when you realize you love having that person in your home…maybe they’re not yours to keep (he HAD family, the Barbours just didn’t know when they’d come to claim him or what personal situations his family were in). I don’t blame them for anything.
I so agree. In the beginning I was happy with Boris so Theo finally found a friend and someone to rely on. But when the two were reunited I really hated Boris. I just thougt he was a bad influence and I hoped that Theo would finally see that in the end.
5. i thoroughly enjoyed The Goldfinch, but was also emotionally troubled by it. “enjoyed” does not fully capture my feeling toward the book. by the time Theo was in the desert palling around with Boris, i was so sad to see his downward spiral. but i kept thinking, was it really a downward spiral? he was in trouble before. it took me a while, well into his living with Hobie, to emotionally accept Theo as he was, a troubled boy and man with some good reason, but some not. i eventually lost sight of the painting as a hopeful symbol, but of a troubled man’s fixation.
2. the Barbour family were fascinating. i was enlightened by Nan’s comment and assessment of the family.
also, i was shocked that Theo’s drug use never fully consumed him, or that any of the Barbour family, Hobie, or Pippa didn’t try to stop or express any real concern. was it realistic that Theo was that good at hiding it?
i really enjoyed reading everyones’ assessment of the book. i’ll continue to read and learn from the comments.
ABM – thanks for starting the book club. i’m through 3 of your book selections now. The Goldfinch is the first i finished on time. i have all your suggestions on my to-read list and plan on getting through them. thanks. please, keep it up.
I red the book recently (in Dutch). I started reading it in february and after 500 pages I put it away for 2 months or so before I finished it.
So, I agree with the comment that the book dragged on too much on several occasions. I do think thought that this has been a deliberate choice by the author. I think it is a choice of style partly telling the story. The book is told from Theo’s perspective and he is drowning, floating through life and feeling num. At some point I felt like I was drowning/floating in the story too. So may times I asked myself: wheeeere is this going? A lot of times nothing exciting happens. And I totaly felt lost with Theo when it turned out in Las Vegas he had been crazy and crying on the streets. Because I didn’t knew this, just like Theo, I felt like I’ve been num too.
For Theo everything that is happening is more than he can handle. In the beginning he is a child and he feels like he has no control over the future. I think later on when he’s grown up he still thinks of himself as the child who lost his mum and has no control over his life and needs to be num to float through life. On that point I agree on the comments that he doesn’t take any responsibility.
My favorite character was definetly Andy. I felt so sad when he turned out to be dead. It would have been so cool if they could have meet up again. And Hobie was amazing. I loved the love for art in the book.
The ending felt a little bit forced but I did appreciate the happy ending. That was a suprise to me.