Wolf Winter (Ekback) - Discussion Questions

Discussion Questions
1. To what extent does landscape affect the behavior of the characters in Wolf Winter?

2. There are three narrators in this story: Maija, Frederika, and the priest. How do their narrative styles differ?

3. Women are at the center of this story. Given the period in which the book is set, their agency is limited. How easy is it for a modern reader to accept this?

4. How wold you characterize the relationship between Maija and Frederika?

5. Jutta, Maija's grandmother, appears to her. What role does she play?

6. Why is Maija so hostile to Frederika's gifts?

7. What role do animals—real and imagined—play in this story?

8. Other older belief systems lie very close to the surface of peoples' lives in Blackasen Mountain. how does the Church attempt to control and manipulate them for its own end?

10. Cecilia Ekback has described a "Wolf Winter" as a moment in our lives when we confront our very darkest thoughts. How do the three main characters emerge from their Wolf Winters?

11. What do you imagine lies in store for the priest?

12. When Maija's husband returns (we may assume he does), how might their relationship have changed?

13. Each of the settlers has brought with them to their new homes on Blackasen Mountain the burdens of their past. What impact do the events in the book have on them?

14. What lies behind Elin Eriksson's actions?

15. The Lapps lead their lives largely in parallel to the settlers. What happens when the two communities come together?

16. Why does Maija persist in her inquiries?

17. Do you think the priest is a moral, immoral, or amoral agent in the story?

18. Why do you think the other settlers regard Maija as a threat?
(Questions issued by the publisher.)

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