Book Club Night Kit

Wild Dark Shore

Charlotte McConaghy

Cozy night

On a remote, storm-battered island near the bottom of the world, a family of lighthouse-and-seedbank keepers takes in a woman who washes ashore, and everyone's carefully guarded quiet starts to crack. It is tender and suspenseful at once, which makes for a night of soft voices and strong opinions.

Come in, you're soaked. There's chowder.

We are reading Charlotte McConaghy's Wild Dark Shore and then gathering somewhere warm to talk about islands, seeds, and the people who take us in. Blankets provided, finishing the book optional.

Reading level: Moderate Pages: 320

Best for: A club that loves beautiful nature writing with a pulse of mystery, and would rather feel together than debate

Discussion

Warm-up

1.Before we talk about anything: what was the weather like in your head while you were reading this? Did you find yourself reaching for a blanket or a window?
2.Where did you do most of your reading, and did the isolation of the island make your own house feel cozier or lonelier?

Digging in

1.The seed vault sits at the heart of this story, a room full of small things kept safe for later. What is in your own version of a seed vault, the things you quietly preserve in case you need them someday?
2.This is a family that has learned to take care of each other in a place where no one else is coming. Which of their small acts of caretaking landed softest for you, and did it remind you of someone who has looked after you?
3.A stranger arrives and is fed, dried off, and given a bed before anyone decides whether to trust her. How did that early hospitality make you feel, and have you ever been taken in (or taken someone in) before the questions were settled?
4.The island is wild and frequently unkind, and the people on it still call it home. Was there a place in your life that was hard to live in but hard to leave, and did this book stir that up for you?

Going deep

1.Grief moves through this house like weather, sometimes loud and sometimes just a change in pressure. Which character's way of carrying loss felt most familiar to you, and were you comforted or unsettled by recognizing it?
2.By the last stretch of the book, had your feelings about trust shifted (toward any of them, or toward the idea of trusting at all)? Describe the feeling you were left holding without telling anyone how it got there.

On the table & to sip

To eat

Big pot of creamy fish chowder with buttered bread for dunking

A subantarctic island runs on what the sea gives you. One pot, ladled out on the couch, is the whole cozy thesis of the night.

Root vegetable and barley bake

The food of a place where things have to grow or be stored carefully. Humble, filling, and it holds warm on the stove for latecomers.

Warm honey-oat seed cake

A nod to the seed vault, with sunflower, poppy, and pumpkin seeds on top. Sweet, sturdy, and nice with tea or whiskey both.

To sip

Hot buttered rum

The drink you hand someone who has just come in from the wind. Indulgent, nurturing, and it smells like the whole room is being looked after.

Smoky whiskey with a splash of water

Peat and salt air, served in short glasses so nobody has to get up. Keeps the slow-burn suspense company.

Spiced apple and ginger cider, warm on the stove (no alcohol)

The non-alcoholic anchor of the night. Steam, cinnamon, and a mug everyone can wrap both hands around.