La Crosse County Library discussion

Our November book club pick is Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel. It follows the events after a pandemic destroyed civilization. The story jumps around following a theater troupe in the post pandemic era traveling through the midwest as well as the events leading up to and right after the pandemic.



Below are some questions to get the discussion going. Feel free to just ignore them, and tell us what you thought of the book!

1. Did you enjoy the book?

2. Who was your favorite character? Least favorite?

3. Compare and contrast the world of Station Eleven with the world of the graphic novels given to Kirsten. What was the metaphor used in the graphic novels?

4. How was the pandemic in this book like the pandemic of 2020? How was it different?

5. The author contests the science fiction label to this book. Do you agree or disagree with her and why?

6. If you have seen the miniseries, what are some big changes that were made differently from the book? Did you like the changes?

7. Shakespeare and his works were used ad nauseum throughout the novel. Why do you think this was? What parallels did they draw?

Happy reading!

To see our thoughts on this book, please see our review (as always, spoiler warning):

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Spoilers warning!

Station Eleven was a book that took me a bit to get into, to orient myself between the different time periods explored pre-pandemic and post-pandemic. However, once I got into it, I really enjoyed it, and found it moving.

I know some might find the inclusion of Shakespeare references throughout the book to be a bit annoying, I think they were able to connect well enough with the story to not be so distracting.

As for my favorite characters, I would have to say Kirsten. She basically was there as the Georgia Flu pandemic started, witnessing Arthur die in front of her on stage during a Shakespeare production.

No doubt she's traumatized, but she is also very tough and learns to roll with the punches of the new pandemic world. (Weapons training seems kind of useful in this world.)

I have to say I didn't really enjoy the Arthur character, although I came to pity him by the end of Station Eleven. The way he went was a terrible way to go. I guess I just didn't sympathize with his motives around his romantic relationships with three different wives (and a divorce from wife #3 and a new girlfriend) by the time he passed.

While I was reading this, I couldn't help but think of if the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) were as deadly as the Georgia Flu, how I would handle it if I were living through a pandemic of this scale. What I do know is that I would miss all the comforts of civilization, not to mention the advanced medicine (we see characters in this book struggling with what used to be trivial injuries and infections) available to us.

It makes me all the more thankful for all the things that haven't happened in this current pandemic, and thankful for what I have.

Sorry to say I believe that the author Emily St. John Mandel is not an author for me. I tried to get into this book twice and also tried to get into the Goon Squad and could not. I felt they both started out well, then took a left turn that I just could not follow. I did not finish either book.

♥ Sandi ❣ wrote: "Sorry to say I believe that the author Emily St. John Mandel is not an author for me. I tried to get into this book twice and also tried to get into the Goon Squad and could not. I felt they both s..."

Sorry to hear that! I have heard from many people that they either really enjoy it or really don't. I hope your next read is better!