Book Club Discussion Questions
For supplemental discussion material see our Beyond the Book article, Thailand and our BookBrowse Review of Fieldwork.
Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!
About this Guide
The following author biography and list of questions about Fieldwork are
intended as resources to aid individual readers and book groups who would like
to learn more about the author and this book. We hope that this guide will
provide you a starting place for discussion, and suggest a variety of
perspectives from which you might approach
Fieldwork.
About the Book
When his girlfriend takes a job in Thailand, Mischa Berlinski goes along for the
ride, planning to enjoy himself and work as little as possible. But one evening
a fellow expatriate tips him off to a story: a charismatic American
anthropologist, Martiya van der Leun, has been found dead--a suicide--in the
Thai prison where she was serving a life sentence for murder. Curious at first,
Mischa is soon immersed in the details of her story. This brilliant, haunting
novel expands into a mystery set among the Thai hill tribes, whose way of life
became a battleground for the missionaries and the scientists living among them.
Discussion Questions
- How does it affect your reading of the novel that the narrator's name is
the same as the author's? Do you imagine them to be the same person?
- "A child needs the happy family," Elena tells Mischa (pg. 23) in an
attempt to describe why Martiya's life turned out as it did. It is the
base." Do you see a connection between Martiya's parents' marriage, the
atmosphere in which she was raised, and her desire to immerse herself in the
life of the Dyalo, or any of her other decisions as an adult?
- How does it change the story to hear so much of Martiya's story from
other characters? Do those who tell Mischa about MartiyaTim Blair, for
example, or Josh O' Connorseem reliable to you?
Why do you think the author chose to include them in the story, rather than
just telling Martiya's story entirely from Mischa's perspective?
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- How does the author develop themes of identity and belonging throughout the narrative?
- What role does the setting play in shaping the characters' decisions and relationships?
- Discuss how the ending reframes the events of the story. Were you surprised?
Unless otherwise stated, this discussion guide is reprinted with the permission of Picador.
Any page references refer to a USA edition of the book, usually the trade paperback version, and may vary in other editions.