July Bookworms

That's just the beginning of her bewildering experiences.  Along with fixing the house, fighting the weather, and figuring out the motives of the men she's involved with, she becomes intrigued by a legend about the cove where she lives. Perhaps the most significant outcome of Bethany's experience is the change within as she gains the confidence to believe in herself and her abilities. 

Bethany becomes an unforgettable character for readers as they feel her pain, fear, and desperation when she faces the challenges that will either defeat her or help heal her.  In this novel, first-time author Marlene Austin shows her ability as a storyteller while reaffirming the value of extended and eternal families.

2. Many of Bethany's personality traits evolved from the upbringing that Amelia, her grandmother, gave her. Starting with Amelia's own childhood and the characteristics of her parents as described by Dr. Noel, can you trace the changes in Amelia's perspectives towards motherhood after her only daughter Glennis left, and her reasons for changing her parenting style so drastically when she raised Bethany?  If you were Victoria, Amelia's surrogate mother, what advice would you have given Amelia? 

3. Many young women who have been sheltered by their families or religion find themselves swept up by their first romance.  What advice would you give a friend or daughter in the situation that Bethany found herself with Peter? With Joseph?  With Rob?  Do any of your suggestions about romantic relationships also apply to other situations and decisions in life?

4.  As Bethany drives to her appointment with Dr. Noel, and at the end of her appointment, their discussion turns to her resentment towards her "friends" and Amelia.  What specific advice did Dr. Noel give Bethany?  Was it realistic? Could others also use this to their advantage?

5. Many times people do not recognize their part in a misunderstanding or the harm their attitudes can do to a  relationship.  When did Bethany become aware of her part in her own negative feelings toward Amelia, and what change did that make in her attitude and response to Amelia's death?

6. The words repent and repentance are not used in Grave Secrets.  Did Bethany need to repent of her feelings towards Amelia or Peter, Joseph, Kim, or Rob?  Did the things that Dr. Noel suggested actually facilitate or create a repentance process?  What relationship does the term change have to the words repent and repentance-do we tend to look at some of the properties of repentance as unusual and/or religious procedures only, or de we consider the steps of repentance similar to our everyday behavior as we make normal changes? 

For instance, since we constantly change our lives by altering, modifying, adjusting, apologizing, regretting, feeling sorry, and asking forgiveness for the ways we behave, might we be able to use the same skills in changing other behavior? If we react to "sinners" (including ourselves) in more positive ways, using different words to describe their/our behavior, would we be able to eliminate some of the defensive feelings of those we are trying to help, or some of the natural apathy and self-loathing that prevents our own progress?

7. Grieving is an overwhelming process that involves many varying emotions, such as denial, anger, pain, loneliness, and depression, etc. Do you think that many of Bethany's emotional responses to the events after Amelia's death were normal and natural? Were they (anger and loneliness, etc.) basic, uncomplicated emotions as she felt and expressed them, or signs of grieving, or something else? Is the grieving process related only to death, or can we feel those same emotions with other experiences? How do we cope with those experiences? As you have grieved in your life, what things have comforted you-and how was your process different from others'?

How long did it take you to write Grave Secrets?  What in your background helped you as you formulated the book?

I have been working on Grave Secrets for probably twelve years.  I wrote it, got readers' suggestions before rewriting, then more readers, rewriting, and on and on until I sometimes wondered if there were any original paragraphs left in the manuscript, but it has been worth the ride!

As a teacher, a secretary at Harvard University, a wife, and a parent raising two daughters after losing a son, I had experienced a lot. But it was when I put my experiences into perspective as I read through the vital records of my ancestors that I was able to comprehend much more about the full focus of life.  Our son's small grave was only one in a peaceful cove of hundreds who had lived and died during the three hundred years our ancestors had lived in America.  That impact became more and more profound each time I visited a cemetery or figuratively rebuild a family from the handwritten data of their vital records.  Writing has opened a pathway for me to share the impact and relevance of those experiences-much more than a way to explore or expose a plot line. 

Has life in the Austin household changed since you've started writing more?

Our household is pretty much the same as it has always been.  I'm a bit compulsive about any project I do, so I'll spend several months writing, then change to researching family history, then do a massive ward family-history project, put a lot of time in on my flower beds, clean the house (generally minimally, although I do try to do one big fix-up or redecoration project per year), and hope I get back around to Christmas shopping by Christmas. 

Our household currently consists of three people, since one daughter has just returned to BYU from a mission, and our two cats: Pata ("Big Foot" in Chilean Spanish, from where my husband served his mission), and Chico ("Little Friend"-who weighs in at 14 pounds and easily stretches across the full width of a twin bed).  The biggest change that has happened in our lifestyle came four years ago when I was diagnosed with MS, and I am still daily revising my list of the "ten best reasons to have MS."  So far, on hot, humid days, or cold, windy Christmas-shopping trips, the top reason is that wonderful handicapped-parking sticker!