The Echo of Old Books: A Novel

Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.

1. Several characters in the novel find fresh starts after a particularly difficult time. Have you ever had to start over in this way? How did you manage it?

2. Deception and misdirection are constant threats throughout the novel. What steps would you have taken to avoid misunderstanding if you were in these characters’ shoes?

3. Ashlyn is gifted with psychometry, which allows her to sense emotional impressions from objects. Do you believe in (or have you experienced) similar phenomena?

4. Consider the dynamics of privilege and wealth portrayed in the novel. What role does privilege, or the lack of it, play in your own life?

Examine the book’s relevance to societal issues, historical events, or cultural themes.

1. Antisemitism plays an important role in the novel. What is the relevance of the novel’s portrayal of antisemitism to the contemporary world?

2. How are the events of the novel shaped by gender expectations, both in the 1940s and the present day?

3. Has social elitism changed since Marian’s day? If so, how? If not, what might account for its persistence?

Dive into the book’s structure, characters, themes, and symbolism.

1. Discuss common themes and motifs across this and any other of Barbara Davis’s novels you may have read, such as Every Precious and Fragile Thing or The Keeper of Happy Endings. Does this author’s work have any defining features?

2. Would you characterize The Echo of Old Books as magical realism, fabulism, or another genre entirely? It may be helpful to compare the novel to classic examples of each genre—e.g., Gabriel García Márquez’s One Hundred Years of Solitude.

3. Compare and contrast the two romantic relationships central to the novel: Ashlyn and Ethan versus Hugh and Marian. What are the strengths and weaknesses of each relationship, and how does this speak to the novel’s overall vision of love?

4. The title refers to Ashlyn’s ability to pick up vibrations from physical books. What are some other ways that “echoes” manifest in the novel? 

5. Hugh and Marian both suffer from pride as a “fatal flaw” that ultimately destroys their happiness. What are some other flaws displayed by characters in the novel? How do these flaws influence their character arcs? How do they relate to the novel’s themes?