Child Finder (Denfeld) - Discussion Questions

Discussion Questions
We'll add publisher questions if and when they're available; in the meantime, consider our LitLovers talking points to help start a discussion for The Child Finder … then take off on your own:

1. How would you describe Naomi? What motivates her to become "the child finder? When asked by Madison's mother how she is able to find lost children, Naomi responds, "I know freedom." What does she mean? Talk about the ways in which Naomi uses her experience, both as a previous captive and as an investigator, to locate missing children?

2. What is Naomi's relationship with Jerome? Why is she unable to settle accept his offer of love? She acknowledges her need to "keep running from terrifying shadows she couldn't see," but wouldn't Jerome offer some protection from those shadows?

3. Something hovers around the edges of Naomi's memory which is trying to reveal itself through her dreams. Did you guess what it is before the end of the book? Why is Naomi unable to remember anything before her life with Mrs. Cottle and Jerome? Talk about those years with her foster family and about Mrs. Cottle's goodness.

4. Naomi tells Madison's mother that if she is able to locate her daughter, that Madison "won't return the same." What does Naomi mean … and how else does Rene Denfeld explore the lasting effects of trauma on survivors of kidnapping and child abuse?

5. Talk about the novel's setting: the mountains, the snow and ice, the darkness of the forest. How does that setting contribute to the book's atmosphere?

6. What are some of the ways Denfeld incorporates fairy tale elements into her novel. Why might she have done so?

7. Talk about Mr. B, both his monstrous side and his tender side. How would you describe his pathology … and does what we learn at the end of the novel help you make sense of his actions?

8. Describe the emotional dynamics between Mr. B and Madison. — why does Madison want to be close to Mr. B yet fear him at the same time? How does her retreat into her imagination help her survive? Finally, how difficult was it for you to read about the physical relationship between Mr. B and Madison?

m. SPOILER ALERT: At the end, Naomi tells Madison that she must own her experience. Why does she say that — what does she mean?

(Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution. Thanks.)

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