Book Club Discussion Questions
Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!
About This Reading Guide
The introduction, discussion questions, suggestions for further reading, and author biography that follow are designed to enhance your reading group's exploration of Patrick McGrath's
Martha Peake, a gripping novel set in England and America during the tumultuous years leading up to the American Revolution. The story of a spirited young girl and her tragically flawed father,
Martha Peake unfolds in a narrative that brilliantly re-creates the ominous atmosphere of a traditional Gothic tale.
Synopsis
Summoned to the gloomy, decaying Drogo Hall by his dying uncle, William, Ambrose Tree listens to William's disjointed tale of Harry Peake, a poet and performer known as the "Cripplegate Monster." Harry, his back broken in a fire that took the life of his beloved wife, fled his native Cornwall with his eight-year-old daughter, Martha. In London's seedier pubs and taverns, he ekes out a living for himself and Martha by displaying his grotesquely deformed body and reciting his poetic masterpiece, a fiery ballad about the tyranny of the English king and the cry for freedom arising in the American colonies. Harry's fame attracts the attention of William's employer, the celebrated anatomist Lord Drogo, and Harry reluctantly agrees to let the doctor study his spine in return for a bit of extra spending money. The examinations stir up old feelings of shame and humiliation, sending Harry spiraling out of control. Drunk on gin after years of abstinence, he commits an unforgivable act and destroys the one thing that had always sustained him—the devotion of his daughter. With William's help, Martha escapes from England and the terrors it holds to make a new life for herself in America. The year is 1774 and in the small New England village where Martha is welcomed into her uncle's family, revolutionary fever is reaching a boiling point. Martha embraces the spirit of rebellion her father captured with such passion in his poetry, but it is the darker side of her father's legacy that compels Martha to make the fateful choice between her own desires and the cause of the Revolution.
With consummate skill, Patrick McGrath brings to life the squalor and depravity of eighteenth-century London and the hardships and hopes that drove the American colonists to fight for their freedom, weaving history, philosophy, and politics into a captivating family drama. Rich in breathtaking adventure and psychological suspense,
Martha Peake is a haunting portrait of human frailty, courage, and redemption.
Reader's Guide
- Martha Peake is constructed as a story within a story, presented by a narrator who weaves his own imaginings into a tale told by his uncle. How does this narrative device influence the reader's impressions of the characters and the facts of the story as they unfold? Did you find yourself accepting Ambrose Tree's interpretations of events, even though he openly acknowledges his use of conjecture to fill in the gaps in his uncle's narrative?
- William describes Harry as "one of those cursed few to whom Nature in her folly gave the soul of a smuggler, and the tongue of a poet" [p. 6]. How does Harry's childhood contribute to his divided nature? Are both elements of his character essential to his survival in London?
- Harry sees showing off his backbone as "a spiritual labour, a kind of penance. To humiliate himself before the crowd was to invite the contempt and disgust he felt he deserved. For he wanted to cauterize his soul" [p. 37]. Does his decision to write poetry show that he is ready to move on with his life? What motivates him to recite his poem to an audience?
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- How does the author develop themes of identity and belonging throughout the narrative?
- What role does the setting play in shaping the characters' decisions and relationships?
- Discuss how the ending reframes the events of the story. Were you surprised?
Unless otherwise stated, this discussion guide is reprinted with the permission of Vintage.
Any page references refer to a USA edition of the book, usually the trade paperback version, and may vary in other editions.
