— DailyCheapReads.com Top Four of 2010
Everliving
“Spooky and romantic...an absorbing tale of lost love, mystery,
and paranormal longing.”
— University Book Store Bellevue Staff Favorite
“An exciting work of fiction, highly recommended.”
— Midwest Book Review
“This one will knock you over...Christina Dudley is
a masterful writer.” — The Bookcast.com
Mia and the Magic Cupcakes
2010 PNWA Zola Award-Winner –
Best Children’s Book
READING GROUP GUIDE
If you were making a movie of The Beresfords, whom would you cast?
At the opening of the book, in what ways are Frannie’s feelings and trials typical of adolescence, and how are they different? Why do you think she is so very attached to Jonathan?
What draws each of the Beresfords to Eric and Caroline Grant, initially? What do the Grants represent to the Beresfords and to Frannie?
Frannie says of her uncle, “He maintained strict order, leaning too far in the direction of rules and the outward appearance of obedience and respect” (Chapter 2). How responsible do you think Paul Beresford is for his children’s choices and behavior? Do you believe he changes, over the course of the story?
Frannie begins by referring to God as “the friend of a friend,” someone she would talk to “like you would include a stranger in your conversation from politeness, rather than a desire to get acquainted” (Chapter 3). Later she pictures him “a gruff senior statesman” to whom she submits “prayers like progress reports” (Chapter 18). How do you think she views him by the end? What shapes her views of God?
Speaking of views of God, how sincere did you find Eric Grant’s journey? Do you believe it’s possible to be a faith-filled person and to suffer moral collapse? Does one negate the other?
What was Uncle Paul’s purpose in sending Frannie to Colorado? How do you think her mother felt about it? What did Frannie and the Beresfords learn during her exile?
What do you think forms the best basis for marriage? On what is Jonathan and Frannie’s relationship built? Do you agree with Jonathan saying, “We are who we are because our stories are our stories, complete with mysteries and mistakes and detours. Without those, we would not become who we become” (Chapter 4)? Will Jonathan be a better match for having loved Caroline Grant?
What do you think would have happened to Frannie, had Jonathan not had a change of heart? Why?
The Beresfords is described as “more than a nod to Jane Austen’s Mansfield Park.” If you’re familiar with Mansfield Park, what similarities do you find? What differences? Did it make a difference to you that The Beresfords is told in Frannie’s own voice, rather than third person?
Christina Dudley's previous novel Everliving was called "spooky and romantic" and chosen as a Staff Favorite by the University of Washington Bookstore. Her debut novel Mourning Becomes Cassandra was a LoveWebRadio Book-of-the-Month and chosen Top Four of 2010 by DailyCheapReads.com. At the urging of her readers, she penned Mourning’s sequel The Littlest Doubts. For a younger audience, her Mia and the Magic Cupcakes garnered a 2010 Zola Award for Best Children's Picture Book.
When not writing, Dudley can be found crashing local book clubs and blogging for the Bellevue (WA) Farmers Market as the UrbanFarmJunkie. More than you ever wanted to know about her can be found at www.christinadudley.com. She and her family live in Bellevue, Washington.
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