1. This novel begins in the present and then employs the narrator’s flash-backs to relate the Noble family’s history. What do you know about your ancestors—their families, faith, daily life? If you had the chance, what would you ask your great-grandparents, and how could their stories help you live your life today?
2. In the first chapters, we see an alienated, frustrated teenager in Little Am, who hides behind her “ghoulish” attire and indifferent attitude. Over the course of a few days spent alone with her great-grandmother, Little Am sheds her protective armor to reveal the lively, engaging young woman beneath the dark clothes and the sullen expression. What factors brought about such dramatic change? Has something like this happened to you or someone you know? What can the oldest and the youngest members of your family (neighborhood, church) contribute to each other’s lives? Discuss ways you can help nurture good cross-generational relationships.
3. What is the significance of the amethyst brooch? What if it had been a ruby pendant, a string of pearls, or a diamond ring?
4. Discuss the real family heirloom at the core of The Amethyst Heart.
5. There are several romantic subplots woven throughout this story. Which one appealed to you the most and why?
6. Though World War II (1939-1945) is more familiar to most of us, it was World War I (1914-1918) that set the tone for what one writer has called “this terrible century.” Horrific new modes of combat (chemical weapons, air attack, trench warfare) resulted in unprecedented casualties. Many soldiers who survived the war returned home scarred beyond recognition—some with missing limbs, some wearing masks to hide freakishly disfigured faces. In The Amethyst Heart, battle-scarred veteran Harper Wainwright is called “freak” by town boys, turned down for jobs, and is rejected by his girlfriend. Yet Amethyst Noble falls in love with him. Why do you think she is able to look past Harper’s deformities? What is it about his character that makes him a heroic figure in this story?
7. The fictional setting of Cambridge, Mississippi bears a resemblance to the real-life town of Oxford, home of the University of Mississippi. In 1963, James Meredith became the first African-American student to attend classes at the school, but that historic enrollment was marred by violence when an angry crowd of white segregationists (including students) confronted National Guard troops called out by then-President John F. Kennedy. Against this backdrop of 19th century disharmony, the black-white relationships in Amethyst Heart’s Cambridge present a striking foil. How does this anomalous situation help us to view the present with hope?
8. In the chapter called “The Offering” we are privy to the inner thoughts of Amethyst Noble in September, 1946, as she takes part in the first racially-integrated service at Dix Godwin’s church. Thinking back on her family history and recent events in her own life, she ties her thoughts together in this sentence: “Everything fit.” Does “everything fit” in your own story? If not, how can you learn to see patterns of God’s design in the “winding roads and intersection of lives” in your own family history?
9. Is Amethyst Noble the hero of this story? If so, what are her most admirable qualities and how did she acquire them? Who else can be considered a hero/heroine in The Amethyst Heart?
10. Why does Conrad fail to “come around” the way Little Am did? Does this less-than-happy ending for his story bother you, or is it satisfying? Why do you think he turned out the way he did, given his family heritage and good parenting? Do you think the author uses Conrad’s story to illustrate our fallen nature, or to show how a child can absorb negative influences despite the family’s best efforts? Does the author leave room for redemption in Conrad’s life, or is she content to leave those questions unsettled? How or why?
11. What does this book teach us about the value of remembering the past? Does it present that lesson forcefully or with finesse? What other lessons does it have for the reader? Are there any particular ways in which the story moves you to do something different in your own life? Which character do you find most inspiring and why?