Podcasts

Audio and video podcasts of the Charles Frazier Gwinnett Reads event are available here.

Question 13 / 13

Discussion Question #13 of 13

Of his parting from Claire (pages 218-219), Will reflects "Maybe every life has one moment where everything could have been different if you'd climbed on the cart." Do you agree? Do you think that most lives contain these moments of crisis, where one decision changes things permanently?



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Question 12 / 13

Discussion Question #12 of 13

What was Will’s greatest accomplishment? What was his greatest failure?



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Question 11 / 13

Discussion Question #11 of 13

The Cherokee homeland is such a potent force in Thirteen Moons that it some times seems to take on the role of a character with the power to drive or hinder the progress of the plot. Can you identify any situations in which the landscape actually seems either to assist or resist Will Cooper in his quest to win Claire Featherstone or his fight to save Bear's people from removal to the West?



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Question 10 / 13

Discussion Question #10 of 13

How much did you know about the Trail of Tears before you read Thirteen Moons? Do we pay enough attention to this dark part of our national heritage?



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Question 9 / 13

Discussion Question #9 of 13

What do you think Frazier is attempting to signify when Will and Bear must hunt down one of their own (Charley) in order to keep their land?



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Question 8 / 13

Discussion Question #8 of 13

Is this how you envisioned the Cherokee Nation? Do you feel Frazier’s interpretation is authentic? Why or why not?



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Question 7 / 13

Discussion Question #7 of 13

Because we read this novel as Will's memoir, we get to see very little of Claire Featherstone's inner life and thoughts. Can you imagine the events of this novel narrated in Claire's diaries? How do you think she would describe her relationship to Will or to Featherstone?



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Question 6 / 13

Discussion Question #6 of 13

What do you think of the language used by Will and Claire as teenagers? Is the author purposely being lyrical due to the older Will's "mis-recollection" of events?



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Question 5 / 13

Discussion Question #5 of 13

What kind of a character is Will Cooper? Does he strike you as the classic hero of an American Western? Does he bring to mind any historical or literary characters you're already familiar with?



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Question 4 / 13

Discussion Question #4 of 13

How much is a historical novelist responsible for accurate depictions of historical events? More than those writing books set in the contemporary world? Do we read historical fictions like Frazier's with a heightened expectation that care is being taken with "truth"?



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Question 3 / 13

Discussion Question #3 of 13

Who do you think Will was more influenced by in his life: Featherstone or Bear? Why?



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Question 2 / 13

Discussion Question #2 of 13

Do you believe Will is truly in love with Claire, and vice versa?



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Question 1 / 13

Discussion Question #1 of 13

What is your favorite passage from Thirteen Moons? Why?


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Thirteen Moons - 2008 Gwinnett Reads Selection

The Gwinnett County Public Library is pleased to announce the 2008 Gwinnett Reads title:

Thirteen Moons by Charles Frazier

Thirteen Moons is the story of one man’s remarkable life, spanning a century of relentless change. At the age of twelve, an orphan named Will Cooper is given a horse, a key, and a map and is sent on a journey through the wilderness to the edge of the Cherokee Nation, the uncharted white space on the map. Will is a bound boy, obliged to run a remote Indian trading post. As he fulfills his lonesome duty, Will finds a father in Bear, a Cherokee chief, and is adopted by him and his people, developing relationships that ultimately forge Will’s character. All the while, his love of Claire, the enigmatic and captivating charge of volatile and powerful Featherstone, will forever rule Will’s heart. In a distant voice filled with both humor and yearning, Will tells of a lifelong search for home, the hunger for fortune and adventure, the rebuilding of a trampled culture, and above all an enduring pursuit of passion. As he comes to realize, “When all else is lost and gone forever, there is yearning. One of the few welcome lessons age teaches is that only desire trumps time.”

Born and raised in Asheville, North Carolina, Charles Frazier graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1973. He went on to receive an M.A. from Appalachian State University and a Ph.D. in English from the University of South Carolina. After teaching in Colorado, he returned to North Carolina where he raises horses with his wife Catherine and their daughter Annie.

Cold Mountain, his highly acclaimed first novel, was an international bestseller and winner of the National Book Award in 1997. Critics have said that Frazier is an assured writer who knows how to bring history to life. He is also described as a master of landscape and language, both often fresh and surprising in his telling.

Mr. Frazier will be speaking at the Gwinnett Center on July 12th, 2008. He will be accompanied by a Cherokee language translator and a musician. We’ll eat. We’ll talk. We’ll listen.

Watch this blog and the Gwinnett Reads website for more information!

Gwinnett Reads

Gwinnett Reads invites Gwinnett County citizens to share the experience of reading the same book. Gwinnett County Public Library and local partners seek to engage the community in the joys of reading and to generate discussion throughout Gwinnett.

This blog was designed to facilitate that dialogue through interactive online discussions. Once a book has been selected, discussion questions will be posted weekly, and you are encouraged to leave your comments.

All Gwinnett Reads events will also be publicized here, as soon as details are available.

For more information on Gwinnett Reads programming, please call 770-978-5154 or visit http://www.gwinnettreads.org/.