Wanderers (Howrey)

The Wanderers 
Meg Howrey, 2017
Random House
364 pp.
ISBN-13: 9780399574634


Summary
In an age of space exploration, we search to find ourselves.
 
In four years, aerospace giant Prime Space will put the first humans on Mars. Helen Kane, Yoshihiro Tanaka, and Sergei Kuznetsov must prove they’re the crew for the historic voyage by spending seventeen months in the most realistic simulation ever created.

Constantly observed by Prime Space’s team of "Obbers," Helen, Yoshi, and Sergei must appear ever in control. But as their surreal pantomime progresses, each soon realizes that the complications of inner space are no less fraught than those of outer space.

The borders between what is real and unreal begin to blur, and each astronaut is forced to confront demons past and present, even as they struggle to navigate their increasingly claustrophobic quarters—and each other.

Astonishingly imaginative, tenderly comedic, and unerringly wise, The Wanderers explores the differences between those who go and those who stay, telling a story about the desire behind all exploration: the longing for discovery and the great search to understand the human heart. (From the publisher.)

Author Bio
• AKA—Magnus Flyte
• Birth—N/A
• Where—Danville, Illinois, USA
• Education—American School of Ballet
• Awards—Ovation, Best Featured Performance by an Actress
• Currently—lives in Los Angeles, California


Meg Howrey is an American ballet dancer, actress and author. Novels under her own name include The Wanderers (2017), The Cranes Dance (2012), and Blind Sight (2011). Along with Christine Lynch, Howrey has also written two books under the pseudonym Magnus Flyte: The City of Lost Dreams (2013) and The City of Dark Magic (2012). 

Raised in small town Danville, Illinois, Meg claims she wanted to be a dancer from the age of three when she thrilled to her mother's recordings of Fleetwood Mac and Neil Diamond. She left home at 12 to study dance and landed in the big leagues at 15, when she went to study at The School of American Ballet and the Joffrey Ballet, both in New York City.

She went on to perform with the Joffrey in New York and on tour. Later, she danced for the City Ballet of Los Angeles and the Los Angeles Opera. In 2001 she won the Ovation Award for Best Featured Performance by an Actress for her role in the Broadway National Tour of "Contact." Howrey now makes her home in Los Angeles, California. (Adapted from various online sites.)

Book Reviews
Meg Howrey’s prose in this novel is a joy; lucid and piercing, it takes aim at a character or an idea and nails it. There’s no hiding from her gaze: she gets who we are as human beings—and the mirror she shines back is both alarming and consoling. The novel revolves around three astronauts —  three of the most exceptional individuals in the world — selected for the first trip to Mars. Each carries inside of them a desperate yearning to return to the emptiness and vastness of outer space: they spend their time on earth waiting to leave it.  READ MORE …
P.J. Adler - LitLovers


Howrey subtly explores the tensions between our inner and projected selves. Thanks to her wry sense of humor, it totally works.… [A]n often funny story that grows poignant in its final chapters.
Washington Post


Straddling the fine line between outer space and the world we know, The Wanderers is a breathtakingly honest and incredibly beautiful examination of the heart and soul of humankind. The further you progress into the astronaut limbo, the more difficult it becomes to parse through what’s real and what isn’t—and the more it becomes clear that this is a book that isn’t like anything you’ve ever read before.
Newsweek


(Starred review.) Three astronauts and those who know them best explore the limits of truth and love in Howrey’s genre-bending novel.… With these believably fragile and idealistic characters at the helm, Howrey’s insightful novel will take readers to a place where they too can "lift their heads and wonder."
Publishers Weekly


Compelling and timely, these parallel tales of exploration, both through the galaxy and within, should win over a wide variety of readers. —Jennifer B. Stidham, Houston Community Coll. Northeast
Library Journal


[C]onfronts ageless questions of why humans explore, what they are looking for, and what happens when they find it. Evoking the authenticity of Neal Stephenson’s Seveneves with the literary sensitivity of Ann Patchett, Howrey has made the mission-to-Mars motif an exquisite exploration of human space, inner and outer.
Booklist


(Starred review.) Three astronauts and their families must endure the effects of a pioneering deep-space mission.… Howrey, through the poetry of her writing and the richness of her characters, makes it all seem new. A lyrical and subtle space opera.
Kirkus Reviews

Discussion Questions
  1. Like Luke and Nari, do you have a favorite astronaut? If so, who? What about a favorite family member?

2. On p. 20, Mireille thinks "If her mother goes to Mars, then that will be the only story of Mireille’s life. It will wipe out everything." What do you think Mireille means? Discuss Mireille and Helen’s relationship. Is Helen a good mother? Is Mireille’s resentment justified?

3. In what ways do Helen, Sergei, and Yoshi work well together? In what ways do they frustrate one another? Discuss how their dynamics change throughout the novel.

4. At one point Dmitri thinks "The thing about pride, though, is it doesn’t fully occupy you. It’s like holding a sparkler. Basically, you just stand there with a light in your hand and look up" (p. 41). How do Dmitri’s feelings about pride shape his character? How does he feel about his father’s role as an astronaut? Do his feelings toward Sergei change by the end of the novel?

5. For Eidolon, the astronauts are each allowed to bring a very small bag for personal items. Yoshi brings acorns, while Sergei has photos of his sons. What would you take to remind you of home?

6. Is Madoka an artist? Why or why not? Do you agree with her concept of art?

7. How is marriage portrayed in the novel? Do you think Yoshi and Madoka’s relationship will be different when Yoshi returns? If so, how?
 
8. Discuss the intersection of art and science within the novel. Do these two fields approach exploration and discovery differently? In what ways is their approach the same? What, exactly, do you think the astronauts and their families hope to discover?
 
9. Luke notes that the thing that is most incredible about the astronauts is their level of control. Is this control a good thing or a bad thing? How does it affect the astronauts on their mission? How does it affect their relationships with their families?
 
10. What did you think about the ending? What mission do you believe the astronauts were on?

11. Setting aside the realities of training, if you had the chance to go to Mars, would you? Why or why not?
(Questions issued by the publisher.)

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