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1. In the beginning of
the book, Lilly has never stepped foot outside the attic of Blackwood
Manor. Yet she dreams of escaping and exploring the outside world. What
effect do you think being locked up for the first ten years of her life
had on her? Do you think it’s possible for a child in that situation to
develop normally? When Momma finally lets her out, Lilly is frightened
and wants to return to the attic. Why do you think she feels that way?
2. Julia was brought up believing bad things would happen if she didn’t
behave. What effect do you think that belief had on her relationships
with other people? Do you think she was a people pleaser? Why or why
not? How do you think she changed over the course of the novel? What
were the most important events that facilitated those changes?
3. Momma is strict, cold, and physically abusive. But even after she
sells Lilly to the circus sideshow, Lilly still loves and misses her. Do
you think that’s realistic? Why or why not?
4. Julia can’t help but study the interactions between mothers and
daughters. She is drawn to watching people who clearly love each other,
especially parents and their children whose faces light up with
affection and recognition of their unconditional love. She wonders what
that feels like. How do you think that fascination with parental love
effected her decisions concerning the horses at Blackwood Farm? What
events revealed how she felt about them?
5. How much of a role do you think religion played in Momma’s decision
to keep Lilly locked in the attic? How much of a role do you think shame
played? Have you ever heard stories of parents hiding their mentally or
physically handicapped children in an attic or back bedroom? Do you
think that still happens today?
6. Before she knows the truth, Julia briefly wonders if Lilly would have
been better off if she had "gotten help". What do you think would have
happened to Lilly if she had been sent away instead of locked in the
attic? Considering the time period of the story, would she have been
better off or worse? Why?
7. How long did it take for you to figure out what was "wrong" with
Lilly? Were you surprised when you learned the truth? What do you think
the real reason was behind Momma’s decision to sell Lilly to the
sideshow? Was it money, or something else?
8. When Momma takes Lilly out of the house the first time, she gives her
a jacket despite the fact that she’s selling her to the circus and it’s
a warm summer night. Why do you think she does it? What do you think it
means, if anything? What do you think would have happened to Lilly if
she had been able to get away from Momma that night? Would she have
survived? How?
9. Why do you think Julia was so determined to take good care of the
horses and the farm? Why do you think she wanted to prove herself to
Claude?
10. Lilly feels like she has a lot in common with the circus animals.
Why do you think that is? What does she have in common with Pepper? What
about Jojo? Is there a difference between what she has in common with
each of them?
11. Both Momma and Merrick used fear to keep Lilly from trying to
escape. In what ways did they use it similarly? In what ways did they
use it differently?
12. Claude knew the truth about Lilly all along. Why do you think he
kept it a secret? Do you agree with his reasoning? What would you have
done if you saw Momma taking Lilly into the woods, then coming back
without her? What do you think made Claude change his mind about telling
Julia the truth? How did you feel about him in the beginning of the
book? How did you feel about him at the end?
13. Lilly goes from being locked in an attic to performing in front of
thousands of people. What fears did she need to conquer to make that
transition? What other changes did she make to survive in the circus?
What aspects of her earlier life do you think were hardest for her to
overcome?
14. In the 1870’s, P.T. Barnum was one of the first showmen to take a
collection of oddities and human marvels on the road with his circus.
Back then, the sideshow created quite a sensation and became a popular
form of entertainment. In the heyday of the sideshow, human curiosities
were respected as the bread and butter of the circus, and revered all
over the world. The freaks were royalty, not victims or monsters.
Certainly there was exploitation, as in the case of Daisy and Violet
Hilton, Siamese twins who were kept in a cage, beaten, and passed down
in their aunt’s estate like a piece of old jewelry. But for the most
part, the sideshow provided the opportunity for people who couldn’t make
a living in the traditional ways to stand on their own two feet, instead
of slowly dying in institutions. Eventually the appeal of sideshows
declined due to various factors, including increased medical knowledge,
political correctness, and the belief that disease and abnormalities
should evoke pity rather than wonder. Have you ever been to a sideshow?
How did it make you feel? What do you think of people brave enough to
expose their vulnerabilities to the world? If you were born with an
anomaly or deformity, would you be willing to let people stare at you to
make a living?
15. What did you think of Lilly’s father when you first met him? How did
your perception of him change over the course of the book? What could he
have done differently? He attends the circus once a year to see Lilly,
but she never knows he’s there. How did you feel when he showed up in
her tent? Were you surprised by his confession at the end of the story?
16. Pepper is based on a real elephant, Mary, who was hanged by the neck
from a railcar- mounted industrial crane in 1916 for killing an
inexperienced trainer after he prodded her behind the ear with a hook
when she reached down to nibble on a watermelon rind. The first attempt
to hang Mary resulted in a snapped chain, causing Mary to fall and break
her hip as dozens of children fled in terror. The gravely wounded
elephant died during a second attempt at execution and was buried beside
the tracks. A veterinarian examined Mary after the hanging and
determined she had a severely infected tooth in the precise spot where
the trainer had prodded her. When Pepper kills Merrick for trying to
take Jojo, Lilly is devastated because she knows Pepper is going to be
punished. She hates the fact that people get mad at animals for acting
like animals. Her worst fears come true when the crowd wants Pepper
killed and Mr. Barlow makes the decision to execute her. Do you think
animals should be killed for injuring or killing humans? Does it depend
on the circumstance, for instance, if an animal is being caged, forced
to perform, or a human threatens the animal’s young or encroaches on its
territory? Do you think it’s okay to kill an animal based solely on its
potential to be dangerous?
17. What do you think Lilly’s life would have been like if Momma had
never sold her to the circus? How long do you think she would have lived
in the attic? Do you think she would have eventually escaped? How? What
would you have done if you were in that situation?
18. Besides honoring Lilly, why do you think Julia started the horse
rescue?? What do you think Julia’s life was like after she discovered
the truth about her family?
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