Alexa’s Gold
Reading Group Questions
and Topics for Discussion
1. Do you agree with Alexa’s
response to her traumatic work-related assault? Has she tried to envision what lies ahead in her life or
acted with an unhealthy disregard for reality? Is her attempt at societal isolation
healthy or a character frailty? Is she courageous, foolhardy, naïve, or a
complicated mixture of these and other human attributes?
2. Belinda, Alexa’s work and
social friend, is definitely a secondary character. Why is Belinda’s character
integral to Alexa’s journey? Does the character of Belinda represent a personality
trait or traits that may be absent or conspicuously missing from Alexa’s
character?
3. What significant conflicts
exist between Alexa, her mother, or her grandparents that need resolution? Does
Alexa recognize the different influences on her life? Does Alexa navigate her
circumstances with aplomb or defeatism? When considering her mother and
grandmother, is there a spiritual influence and, if so, how significant is it?
4. Alexa’s Gold is in some ways
a typical journey story in which a person travels to a new land, has
adventures, and ends up with a new perspective. There is a search for grandpa’s
hidden gold. Can “gold” be defined as something other than monetary coins? What
new experience or perspective enlightens Alexa?
5. Novels generally rely on
four typical archetypes, to wit, protagonist or hero; monster as either a villainous
person or evil force; Anima figure which is the opposite personality the
protagonist must strive to be in alignment with; and helper who aids the
protagonist or listens to the protagonist and in so doing lets us understand
the protagonist. Alexa is obviously the protagonist. Where do the other
characters fit in?
6. Alexa often bemoans the fact
that Attorney Brad Haberkorn doesn’t tell her everything or anything,
especially when it comes to her grandmother’s will. Does Alexa have a
legitimate gripe? How does this relationship tug-of-war speed or slow Alexa’s
and Brad’s romance? How does her son Samuel fit in? What influence does grandma
exert in selecting Brad to be her attorney or grandma’s earlier life advice to
Alexa?
7. Although cooks use recipes
to reach the goal of successful creations, many psychologists differ on
detailing guaranteed instructions on how to live life. Is Alexa’s chore to find
grandma’s recipe clue to the stashed gold coins more than a practical treasure
hunt? Is the recipe symbolic? Of what? Are there any symbols in Alexa’s story?
8. In life, people often muddle
along. Are there any lessons the characters in Alexa’s Gold did not learn, but
should have?
9. If we assume Alexa did not
want to become a clone of her mother, what aspect of her mother did Alexa
object to? Is either materialism or crude language an inherited or cultural influence?
10. Alexa’s journey is both
emotional and physical. Where does it end? Are there any solid clues in what we
know from the story to date?
Alexa’s Gold is Donan Berg’s first novel after One
Paper Heart, his 2016 winner of Feathered Quill’s Gold Award First Place for
Romance. Read a free Alexa’s Gold sample at http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/713346.
