Book Discussion: Annie Bot by Sierra Greer

 In what ways do you think some of the details of an AI Robot might become a reality in our world?

There has been a lot of talk lately about ChatGPT, AI, and the future. Do you think “robot partners” are a possibility? Do you think they are a good idea? Can you imagine who would want to buy them? Do you think they would look and act like Annie?  

While you were reading the novel, at what point, if ever, did you start to see Annie as essentially human?

Considering that we get to know Doug in the privacy of his own home through the gaze of a robot, how reliable is the portrayal of him?

• Why do you suppose he evokes such powerful reactions? 
• Is he familiar, normal, a monster, or something else? 
• How does Doug’s ability to command Annie change him? 

Doug designs Annie to resemble a specific person from his past. Why is this important? What does this tell us about Doug’s character, his understanding of women, and his desire for control?  

What are the different episodes of betrayal that happen in the novel, and do the reactions to betrayal seem justified to you?

Doug is highly motivated to keep Annie, and she has no choice in the matter. In real life, couples stay together for many reasons even when their relationships are unhealthy. What are some of those reasons, and do you think the novel treats the issue of domestic abuse sensitively?

How do Annie’s other relationships—with Fiona, Christy, Delta, and Cody—cause her trouble or help her grow? How do you think third parties can affect, for better or worse, romantic relationships?

How do the concision and pace of Annie Bot add or detract from the novel? Are there places where you wish you knew more?

The novel includes references to many other books, writers, and poets. Have you read any of the mentioned works? How do you think the allusions mirror the situations and themes of Annie Bot? How are the books, and Annie Bot, related to the ways men and women are socialized in our culture?

• Borges "The Labyrinth Stories"
• The Lottery
• Hills Like White Elephants

What does Doug feel after finding out Annie Cheated? Is Doug responsible for Annies betrayal because he designed and trained her?

Were you surprised by the ending? Was it satisfying? What events do you imagine might follow?

How would this novel have been different if a human woman had purchased a robot boyfriend, or if the relationship involved LGBTQ+ partners?

What leads annies desire to learn programming?

What do you think of Dougs friend Roland?

On Page 66 Doug gets angry with Annie and tells her to never tell him what to think of feel again. Why do you think he reacted so strongly in this instance?

Why does Doug want Delta to think Annie is a human. Do you think Delta knew?

At the end what changes for Annie that she distrusts Doug?

How does her feeling about the way he treats her change over time?

Book Discussion: Death Valley. by Melissa Broder

Has anyone been to the Mojave dessert or Death Valley?

How did you find the short chapters in the book?

What were some memorable humorous moments in the novel?

On page 1, the narrator’s friend texts her this philosophical quote from Kierkegaard: “Life is not a problem to be solved, but a reality to be experienced.” How does this idea resonate throughout the rest of the book? How can we as humans embrace that philosophy?

What is the narrator’s relationship with her father like? Consider the quote: “It is easier to have an intimate relationship with the unconscious than the conscious, the dead than the living. As my father slumbered, I created a fantasy version of him --- resurrecting the man from my youth” (page 4). How does this fantasy of her father come to play a role in the novel?

What does the giant cactus represent to the narrator?

• asylum for both her greatest wishes and everything she was attempting to escape.

How does this novel of transformation in wilderness solitude differ from other books within that genre like Wild or A Walk in the Woods?

• sometimes the peace of solitude can reveal horrors

What are some of the coping mechanisms the narrator uses to deal with her father's convalescence?

Why do you think the author chose to not reveal the narrators name?

What do you think is the difference between empathy and compassion? Which is harder to achieve?
empathy-when we experience the same thing or feel what another person is feeling. We need to pur ourselves in their shoes to relate. Compassion you don't need to put yourself in their shoes in order to have sympathy.

 
On page 59 the narrator says "realization: love is not always a feeling, sometimes its a verb." What does the narrator mean by that?

In chapter 18, Jethra brings up the five love languages when talking about her own father’s passing. What is your love language?

On page 56 the narrators says “Being human, always new things to forgive”. Where do we see forgiveness in the novel?

Have you ever found yourself in a dangerous situation because you underprepared? How did you handle it?

At one point while lost, our narrator remarks: “It dawns on me then that I must really want to live. And it surprises me” (page 162). How does a brush with her own mortality influence her outlook on life?

What was your impression of the narrator’s novel-in-progress? Why do you think she is stuck figuring out the “desert section”? Does her own time in the desert lead to some sort of epiphany?

Throughout DEATH VALLEY, the protagonist longs to feel less alone and talks to receptionists, anonymous Reddit users and even rocks. What does she get out of these interactions? Why is it sometimes easier to talk to strangers than the people we love? Do you think the talking rocks are an example of magical realism or a fabrication of our lonely narrator’s imagination?

Book Discussion: After Birth by Elisa Albert

Questions:

Women over time have fought hard to gain control over their bodies and the decisions surrounding their bodies ( abortion, birth control, elective surgery.) When it comes to birth does that all go out the window?

What is it that separates Ari from connecting with other women. Do you think women often find it difficult to find common ground with other women?

What are your thought on how the male characters were portrayed in the book?

What allows Mina and Ari to become fast friends.
        -Safe place to be vulnerable with each other

What fuels Ari's anger?

Ari is insensibly honest in the book. In our culture how do we praise or punish honest in people?

Did this novel read as the author's manifesto?

What are your thoughts on the way we treat birth in this country?

Mina describes what happened to Ari during her birth as rape, do you agree with that statement?