2. How do the girls’ relationships with one another change over the course of the novel? Take time to consider each of their one-on-one relationships, as well as the dynamic of the three of them together.
3. As Dora stands in her and Cal’s old house, she compares it both to herself—“She felt rather like this old house. . . . Beneath her ever-present smile, she was crumbling”—and to her and Cal’s marriage—“Everywhere she looked, Dora saw . . . that no amount of effort on her part could save it.” In what ways does Dora feel trapped in the house, and how is she able to free herself of it? On a separate but similar note, if the old house represents Dora’s marriage and unhappiness, what does Sea Breeze represent?
4. Which moment do you think was the bigger turning point for Dora—her “broken heart syndrome” stress cardiomyopathy attack, or her realization in the store dressing room after Harper’s outburst? What other major turning points does Dora encounter, and how do they affect her life and her relationships?
5. Dora’s role as Nate’s mother is not easy, but her sisters suspect she puts more pressure and strain on herself than she needs to. What does Dora discover about her relationship with Nate through allowing him to travel to Florida with Carson?
6. Though he is continually withdrawn due to his Asperger’s, Nate’s transformation from the sad, outburst-prone boy at the start of the novel to the more accepting, slightly more outgoing boy at the end is clear. What factors and events most contributed to this transformation? Do you think the change is temporary or permanent, and why?
7. What do you consider to be the main priorities of each summer girl—Carson, Dora, Harper? How, if at all, do you think their priorities change over the course of the novel?
8. Monroe’s theme of humans and animals sharing a connection is evident in The Summer Wind. Consider Carson and Nate’s connection with Delphine, Cara’s connection with the sea-turtle hatchlings, and Taylor’s connections with Jax and Thor. How do these bonds affect their lives and the lives of those they love? Discuss ways in which you can develop your connection with animals and with nature.
9. Harper talks of the expectations placed on her as the heir to the Jameses’ fortune. How do you think those expectations have shaped the woman she has become?
10. What are the major differences between Dora’s relationship with Cal and her relationship with Devlin Cassell? What positives and negatives do you see for her in each relationship, and which would you encourage her to pursue? Why?
11. Consider the role that guilt plays in the novel. Which characters suffer from it, and why? Are all of the characters able to overcome their guilt? Or are there any characters left with guilty feelings at the end of this book?
12. The unearthing of the slave manacles is a poignant moment for the girls—and especially for Lucille. What do you think the manacles represent to her? What emotions do you imagine are stirred in her when she sees and holds them?
13. “We should never underestimate how important our loved ones are to us. Or how powerful one’s grief can be.” Mamaw’s words foreshadow the loss that is to come in the novel’s final pages. Lucille’s passing signifies the end of a long era at Sea Breeze; truly she had become a member of the family. Discuss Mamaw and Lucille’s long friendship, and the impact each woman had on the other’s life.
14. At the end of the novel, Carson is faced with a life-changing decision. Do you think she will decide to have her baby? Do you think she’ll repair her relationship with Blake? What are your predictions for her in the final novel of the Lowcountry Summer trilogy?
15. The theme of healing is dominant in this book, as Dora heals from “broken heart syndrome” and the dolphin Delphine heals from her injuries. Discuss the parallels of their healing: What do both Delphine and Dora have to let go of from their past? What must they find? What are the possibilities for their future? Are other characters undergoing healing in this book?
Reading Group Enhancers
1. On the very first page of the novel, we learn that “being out on Sullivan’s Island, sitting in the shade of a live oak tree, sipping iced tea, and waiting for the occasional offshore breeze” is Mamaw’s “very definition of summer.” What’s yours? Ask each member of your reading group to write down how they define summer on an index card, then take turns sharing the definitions out loud.
2. Carson’s best friends when she was a child were her books—“A Wrinkle in Time, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, and anything by Judy Blume.” Have the members of your group bring their favorite childhood books along to share, and discuss the role reading played in your lives when you were younger.
3. The three summer girls were named after their father’s favorite Southern authors—Harper after Harper Lee, Carson after Carson McCullers, and Dora after Eudora Welty. Split your reading group into three teams, and give each of the teams one of these authors to research, asking them to consider what each author may have in common with her namesake.
4. In gardening, Dora and Harper find an activity that brings them closer together. Bring a bit of nature into your reading group: Purchase packets of seeds, small pots, and a bag of soil ahead of your reading group date, then let each member of your group plant their own mini-garden to take home with them.
5. If playing cards is more your speed, skip the gardening and go straight for discussing the novel over a game of gin rummy—in Mamaw’s honor and Lucille’s memory. Don’t know the rules, or need a quick refresher course? Check out http://www.bicyclecards.com/card-games/rule/gin-rummy.
6. Taylor, the former Marine Carson meets while in Florida, is a participant in the Wounded Warrior Project—a program for which the real-life Joan Mehew won the Carry Forward Award in 2013. To learn more about the vision and purpose of the Wounded Warrior Project, visit http://sandbox.woundedwarriorproject.org.
7. To discover more about Mary Alice Monroe and her books, read her blog, view a list of her upcoming author appearances, and more, visit http://www.maryalicemonroe.com.
AUTHOR PHOTOGRAPH BY BARBARA J. BERGWERF
MARY ALICE MONROE is the New York Times bestselling author of many highly acclaimed novels. She is also an active conservationist who lives in the lowcountry of South Carolina. Visit her at www.maryalicemonroe.com.
FOR MORE ON THIS AUTHOR: authors.simonandschuster.com/Mary-Alice-Monroe
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Also by Mary Alice Monroe
LOWCOUNTRY SUMMER TRILOGY
The Summer Girls
Beach House Memories
The Butterfly’s Daughter
Last Light over Carolina
Time Is a River
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Gallery Books
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This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2014 by Mary Alice Monroe, Ltd.
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever. For information, address Gallery Books Subsidiary Rights Department, 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.
First Gallery Books trade paperback edition June 2014
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Interior design by Jaime Putorti
Cover design by Laywan Kwan
Cover images: photo of woman © Tim Pannell/Corbis;
photo of grass © Vera Kailová/Alamy
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Monroe, Mary Alice.
The summer wind / Mary Alice Monroe.
pages cm.—(The lowcountry summer trilogy)
1. Grandmothers—Fiction. 2. Granddaughters—Fiction. 3. Sisters—Fiction. 4. Self-realization in women—Fiction. 5. Sullivan’s Island (S.C. : Island)—Fiction. 6. Domestic fiction. 7. Psychological fiction. I. Title.
PS3563.O529S88 2014
813'.54—dc23 2014008588
ISBN 978-1-4767-7002-4
ISBN 978-1-4767-0901-7 (pbk)
ISBN 978-1-4767-0904-8 (ebook)
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Acknowledgments
Readers Group Guide
Introduction
Discussion Questions
Reading Group Enhancers
About Mary Alice Monroe
The Summer Wind (Lowcountry Summer) Page 32
