Shelterwood

Content Warning: This section of the guide contains discussion of racism, child abuse, and death.

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. Wingate employs dual timelines (1909 and 1990) to tell the story of the Winding Stair Mountains and the people who seek refuge there. How effective did you find this narrative structure, and how did it impact your reading experience?

2. Shelterwood explores historical injustices perpetrated against the Choctaw people, particularly through the exploitation of guardianship laws. How does this compare to novels like Wingate’s Before We Were Yours, based on the Tennessee Children’s Home Society scandal, or nonfiction accounts like David Grann’s Killers of the Flower Moon, about the 1920 Reign of Terror against Osage Nation members? What similarities do you see in how these works depict exploitation?

3. The title Shelterwood refers to a forestry term for older trees that protect younger growth beneath them. In what ways do you see this metaphor operating throughout the novel? Did you find it a fitting title for the book?