Book Summary and Reviews of There Your Heart Lies by Mary Gordon

Book Summary

From the award-winning novelist Mary Gordon, here is a book whose twentieth-century wisdom can help us understand the difficulties we face in the twenty-first: There Your Heart Lies is a deeply moving novel about an American woman's experiences during the Spanish Civil War, the lessons she learned, and how her story will shape her granddaughter's path.

Marian cut herself off from her wealthy, conservative Irish Catholic family when she volunteered during the Spanish Civil War - an experience she has always kept to herself. Now in her nineties, she shares her Rhode Island cottage with her granddaughter Amelia, a young woman of good heart but only a vague notion of life's purpose. Their daily existence is intertwined with Marian's secret past: the blow to her youthful idealism when she witnessed the brutalities on both sides of Franco's war and the romance that left her trapped in Spain in perilous circumstances for nearly a decade. When Marian is diagnosed with cancer, she finally speaks about what happened to her during those years - personal and ethical challenges nearly unthinkable to Amelia's millennial generation, as well as the unexpected gifts of true love and true friendship.

Marian's story compels Amelia to make her own journey to Spain, to reconcile her grandmother's past with her own uncertain future. With their exquisite female bond at its core, this novel, which explores how character is forged in a particular moment in history and passed down through the generations, is especially relevant in our own time. Its call to arms - a call to speak honestly about evil when it is before us, and equally about goodness - will linger long with its readers.

Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!

1. An emphasis is put on houses and homes throughout the story: Marian's parents' cold mansion, Beech Haven; the stifling, dark house in Spain; Amelia's mother's modern, minimalist house; Marian's current warm and inviting home. Even Johnny weighs in: "Houses only seem safe," he says. "Houses can be blown up. Burned down" (p. 26). Do you think houses have personalities?
2. Have you lived in a house that you adored or abhorred? Was it the circumstances, other residents, or the location that made you feel strongly? What makes a house a home?
3. Marian, Helga, and Rosa are very different personalities. Describe how their interactions make them stronger.
4. Marian has completely different relationships with her older siblings ...