Hello everyone! I will be sending a group email to everyone who has signed up so far. One of the instructions will be for you to find this blog and make a post. We have people still signing up and taking the challenge.
Today I would like you to think of Mooshum and his role as storyteller and historian about the events that take place throughout the book. How believable are his stories? What is your first impression of him as you meet him on page 6 and learn of his fear of outhouses and the reason why. Evelina Harp describes him as, "our favorite indoor entertainment, next to the television." Do his stories serve to humor, to educate, or to preserve history? Or all three. It is a treasured personality trait to be a good storyteller in Indian culture. The ability to tell a good story is a rare gift and should be appreciated.
I look forward to our meeting on August 27th. Feel free to post comments or questions to one another, this is a great forum to prepare for our discussion group. See you soon!
Great questions, Malcolm! Storytelling is certainly a significant theme in The Plague of Doves. My first thought about Mooshum’s storytelling was that it sounds a bit like magical realism. Now that I’m two-thirds of the way through the book I’m thinking of his stories more as myth or legend. Isn’t that how legends are made, by telling stories over and over?
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