Study Guide
Background of the book:
Motherless Soul had many incarnations before it became the novel that has been published by All Things That Matter Press. Perhaps that is appropriate since it is a novel about people with many past lives. The idea for the book began over twenty years before it reached its final form. Steve was not satisfied with the modern story that interlaces with the historical parts. But instead of rewriting those sections he rewrote the book in a play form, with less emphasis on the modern characters. That didn't work as well as he had hoped and he shelved it. Later, when Steve's short stories began to receive acknowledgment, he decided to rework the novel. It was at that time that he wrote the final version.
The sections of the book that are set in the American Civil War were the first to take shape. Steve's interest in that period of our country's history stems from his family's history. His great-grandfather, Harry Mathews, fought in the war on the union side and was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his actions at the Battle of Petersburg. Harry also wrote a memoir that was published with a limited printing and that is still treasured by Steve's family.
Steve's interest in mother/daughter relationships stems from his own family. Steve and his wife, Toni, raised a son and a daughter. It was important to Steve to write about a parent and child of the same gender because he wanted to capture the sense that mothers often see their daughters as new versions of themselves and that most mothers try to steer their daughters away from the mistakes they made in their own lives. The same thoughts and emotions are there for a father raising a son, but Steve felt he could look at the mother daughter relationship with more objectivity.
The souls of the characters in Motherless Soul are part of the same spiritual family and travel from life to life together. Someone who was a man in a past life might be a woman in this one. Someone who was a mother to another person might have an entirely different relationship with that soul in the current incarnation. But the feelings and personality traits of the previous lives carry over to the present one. In that way relationships can be explored from entirely new angles. Questions such as: Why does this person treat me as if I am her child? or Why is this person attracted to me? occur throughout the book.
Motherless Soul is a novel about love that transcends time. It is a mystery and it is a romance. Hopefully, the readers will enjoy the story while the book provides them with a chance to discuss some concepts they hadn't considered before.
Topics for discussion including quotes and questions for study:
Loss -
Holidays had been difficult times during Emily's childhood, especially Christmas. There hadn't been a lack of gifts. In fact her father had always spent too much. But the presents disappointed her because they were always a little different from what she wanted. He didn't know her wishes as well as he should have. He gave her a ruffled skirt when she wanted pants and gave her Indian drums and cowboy cap guns when she wanted a rocking horse. Even the dolls disappointed her at first. But she grew to love them, perhaps a little more than she should have.
1.Why would grief cause Emily's father to pull away from his daughter? 2.Why would Emily pull away from friends when she seemed to resent her father's reaction?
Past Lives -
"You're slipping through time and space into a place that's been buried in your heart for ages upon ages. Something important happened to you in this place. You're starting to remember what it was like: the smells, the sounds, the texture of the world around you." Her eyes started to burn. Memories were flowing into her head after a period of nothingness and those sensations were different from what she'd experienced the day before. This time it was as if she were two people. The person she had been before the session began, the old woman nearing the end of her life, was now watching someone else from inside that other person's body. The other person was very young, but in trouble.
1. Past life regression is a technique to bring out memories of past lives by using hypnosis. Some people believe these memories are real, while others believe they are fantasies built from a combination of experiences, studied events, and imagination. How do we know what is real? 2. What religions accept reincarnation? 3. Does reincarnation have a tradition in Christianity?
Civil War -
When Charles and Samuel reached Little Round Top, the stones and a couple of long ditches had already been taken by the first soldiers. So they jumped behind a cluster of slender Birch trees, checked their rifles, and prepared to fire from there. Charles knew their protection would have to come from the Lord, because the thin trees were poor shields. The noise was ferocious, with guns exploding, bullets flashing by and men screaming. A foul smell rose from the huge numbers of men whose bowels could not handle their fear. And there was also the smell of blood. Half of the men on both sides were in their shirtsleeves. And there was so much dirt everywhere that the only way to tell the Rebs from the Yanks was by which way they were running. Charles shot at the ones coming up the hill and he thought he hit one or two. He couldn't be sure because everything was happening so fast. The battle noise was so intense he felt as if it was tossing him about like a wind storm. He had stopped thinking and was reacting through adrenaline and a primitive instinct to survive.
1. Although the American Civil War was close to one hundred and fifty years ago it still impacts our lives today. In what ways do we see that impact? 2. Many of us have ancestors who fought in the Civil War. Does anyone know the stories of their own family members? 3. There are people who believe that there has never been a war worth fighting. Do you think the Civil War had benefits that outweigh the horrors?
Mother/Daughter Relationships -
She looked down at her hands in her lap. The wrinkled skin on her wrists and her palms and across the backs of her hands and her fingers was pale pink with blue veins peeking through and a couple of dark blemishes. They were the hands of an old woman and they were empty hands. The memory of her mother reminded her how empty they'd been throughout her life. She tried not to cry, but the tears started rolling down her cheeks. She brushed her hands across her face and then looked down at the floor as she rubbed the back of her neck and sucked in a deep breath. She'd lived a life without her mother. She had gone on from that tragedy to lead a life with few friends and, after her father had died, without any family at all. No one cared who she was or what she had done throughout the years she had spent in the world. And now she had a picture of what she'd missed. She felt what it was like to watch someone take pride in the smallest of her accomplishments, even the simple ability to walk.
1. What are the attributes that make a good mother? How do these qualities relate to your own life? 2. Do most daughters emulate their mothers, rebel against their mothers, or do a combination of both?