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The Ways We Hide


From the bestselling author of Sold On A Monday, a sweeping tale of an ...
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The toy that Fenna and Aire shared did not get lost as they grew. What are your thoughts on why the author used a toy in this manner?

Created: 09/12/22

Replies: 10

Posted Sep. 12, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
chrisnicel

Join Date: 07/11/22

Posts: 14

The toy that Fenna and Aire shared did not get lost as they grew. What are your thoughts on why the author used a toy in this manner?

Clearly they used the toy to pass notes back and forth, but that could have been achieved in other ways. The toy could have been easily lost. But it is an important tie through the book. What other meanings could it have?


Posted Sep. 14, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
lilc

Join Date: 04/10/17

Posts: 20

RE: The toy that Fenna and Aire shared ...

The toy provided the "hiding" place for Fenna & Aire's relationship.


Posted Sep. 14, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
cindyb

Join Date: 04/14/20

Posts: 110

RE: The toy that Fenna and Aire shared ...

I liked the toy train providing a way for Aire and Fenna to connect and stay connected. I thought it was clever to have the train be the first item that was used to conceal messages in the story. Especially given Fenna’s job with M19.


Posted Sep. 14, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
christineb

Join Date: 10/13/11

Posts: 120

RE: The toy that Fenna and Aire shared ...

The toy train was used throughout the book to symbolize "the ways we hide". I thought it was very clever and poignant.


Posted Sep. 26, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
Navy Mom

Join Date: 04/12/12

Posts: 294

RE: The toy that Fenna and Aire shared ...

The toy symbolizes the connection between Fenna and Arie. It was at the center of the most traumatic thing that every happened to them as children. It was their bond.


Posted Sep. 27, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
LizB

Join Date: 06/27/18

Posts: 12

RE: The toy that Fenna and Aire shared ...

I loved it when the toy train would resurface with a new note hidden inside. It was another example of an everyday object being used in a crafty way. It was a great bonding too, for Fenna and Arie. So glad it survived throughout the novel!


Posted Sep. 30, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
marys

Join Date: 05/24/11

Posts: 59

RE: The toy that Fenna and Aire shared ...

I love Christine B's take on the toy being "the ways we hide" very clever! Very apt capture of the various ways of hiding that goes on in the book - from Fenna's disguises to her magic acts, to the toy train.


Posted Oct. 03, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
Missys

Join Date: 10/24/17

Posts: 46

RE: The toy that Fenna and Aire shared ...

The toy train did symbolize another way "we hide". The train was also a tangible object that tied each step of the adventure together. As a reader, it's important to have a tangible object to support the emotional drama as it unfolds.
And trains were such an important part of life during the timeline of the novel.

Another example of McMorris's talent in her craft.


Posted Oct. 14, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
K Bosman

Join Date: 09/15/22

Posts: 53

RE: The toy that Fenna and Aire shared ...

I agree, the toy train did symbolize a way we hide. Trains also bring people together. I am in the 60+ generation that grew up in a culture where trains brought people together. It brought our Grandmother to us, and us to our Grandmother.


Posted Oct. 16, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
reene

Join Date: 02/18/15

Posts: 497

RE: The toy that Fenna and Aire shared ...

The toy symbolized ways in which we hide and it was also one of the things that survived Fenn's early trauma. It would always have deep meaning to both characters. Even when they were apart the train brought them together and it held their deepest secrets. It certainly demonstrated how ordinary objects could be used in many ways. Great use of symbolism in the novel.


Posted Oct. 19, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
DebbieLeeB

Join Date: 10/19/22

Posts: 2

RE: The toy that Fenna and Aire shared ...

I enjoyed the use of the toy train as a way to connect back to the innocence of their relationship, the most basic and fundamental connection they shared since childhood.


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