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Book Club Questions 

I am available, either in-person or virtual (Zoom, Teams...), to participate in a book club discussion. 

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A book club discussion guide could include the following list of questions. I've separated the questions by themes, but there is a lot of overlap between the themes.  If you have additional questions that have been fun and engaging in your book club and if you don't mind sharing them, please either email them to me or use the Contact form on the website.

 

THANK YOU!

Discussion Theme:  Characters

  • There are several characters who unquestionably believe the baby named Jesus is the Son of God (Jude Aya, Elisheba, The High Priest, Luke…) there are others who pragmatically believe (Melchior, Jerome…), there are others who don’t believe (Mary, Joseph, Balthazar, Caspar…) and finally there are others who never express an opinion (The Keeper…).Which character do you have the closest affinity to?

  • Who is the most sympathetic character in the book and why?

  • Who is the least sympathetic character in the book and why?

  • Who, or what, is the cat who repeatedly appears from the time of the prophets through to the present day? Is he good, or evil, or just a cat who enjoys being at the center of things?

  • Mary’s parents are not warm, or caring, or particularly loving, yet Mary is all those things. How can Mary be those things raised by parents who were devoid of those traits?

  • Vashti Magdalene is Mary’s best friend. How did she influence and help shape Mary?

  • In what ways are Jude-Aya, the peasant mistaken for a Wise Man, similar to Melchior, the most devout of the Wise Men?

  • The Keeper of the Inn where Mary gave birth to Jesus is kind, generous, and compassionate. How does his portrayal in the book differ from his portrayal in the Bible?

  • Isaiah and Micah are portrayed as prophetic rivals. Which one are you rooting for and why?

  • The story of Mary and Joseph ends as they are arriving back in Nazareth. We never get to see the interaction between Joseph and the Corinthian family after their wealth was destroyed. How would you write that chapter?

Discussion Theme:  Storytelling

  • The story is told chronologically using a third-person omniscient point of view.If it were to be written from a first-person point of view, which character would you have narrating the story?

  • In the chapter to Codify and Canonize, Luke, as a Gospel writer, describes his work: "I see my task as having to pull together a cohesive story based on bits of written history and oral storytelling. One third is verifiable fact, another third is highly plausible lore, and the final third is a mix of myths, legends, and tales that act as a sort of glue that holds the whole thing together. This is how history is written.” Is this indeed how history is written? Imagine yourself as Luke, never having met Jesus and writing about his life decades after his death. How would you approach such a task?

  • The heart of the book takes place in the days immediately before and after the birth of the Jesus, but the book begins with two chapters about the prophets (690 years before the birth) and ends with a chapter about Luke (roughly 100 AD) and the Pope’s Christmas Eve Mass in 2021. What purpose do the first two and last two chapters serve?

Discussion Theme:  The Nature of Satire and Parody

  • How is the book’s satire/humor similar to that in The Book of Mormon, Monty Pythons Life of Brian or other religious satires? How is it different?

  • Merriam-Webster dictionary defines satire as “a literary work holding up human vices and follies to ridicule or scorn.”  It defines parody as “a literary or musical work in which the style of an author or work is closely imitated for comic effect or in ridicule.”What are the books satiric elements and what are the elements of parody?

  • In their review of the book Kirkus Reviews states that “Devout Christian readers will take issue with some aspects of the tale, but overall, it offers a humorous departure from the original text that many readers will enjoy.” There will be people who think this book should be banned in public libraries. What are the circumstances, if any, in which a book should be banned?

  • Should any religion be the subject of satire or parody?

Discussion Theme: The Bible and Religion

  • Which details or story elements of this book, if any, are consistent with how they are portrayed in the Bible?

  • The book briefly touches on biblical stories like Jonah and the Whale, Moses transfiguring his walking staff into a snake, and it also touches on stories from other religions (e.g. Ganesha, a Hindu god). What role do stories, myths, parables play in faith?

  • In the chapter “The Granting of Miracles” the High Priest grants each of the Wise Men a miracle (supposedly on behalf of Jesus). If you were in the shoes of the Wise Men, what would you request?

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