Introduction

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Excerpt

The Thirsty Baby

The bottle of water sat on Officer Harriet’s desk, its contents clear, its slightly crumpled label depicting the ice-capped Rwenzori Mountains. In spite of the heat, the policewoman and the reporter looked upon it not with thirst but with suspicion. ... view entire excerpt...

Discussion Questions

1. Who is Gladys Kalibbala and why do the police often call on her when lost and abandoned children turn up at their stations? What kind of reporting does Gladys do and how do her readers respond to it?

2. Why are so many children lost and abandoned in Kampala? What is similar among their stories? What factors does Gladys say play a role in their tragic fate? Could these situations be mitigated? If so, how?

3. The people that Gladys helps often come to depend on her demanding more and more from her. How does Gladys react in these situations? Does she comply with their wishes? Do you agree with her choices or do you believe that she goes too far? Discuss.

4. How does Gladys believe she arrived at her vocation? What is her own story? What was Gladys’s family like and how did she come to be a reporter and then a rescuer of children?

5. Gladys says: “Greater opportunity was no guarantee of good fortune. And bad luck could mean an escape from something worse” (61). What does she mean by this? What examples of this are found in the book?

6. One of Gladys’s colleagues tells her: “I think it’s you people who will go to heaven” (62). Why does this remark bother Gladys? What does she believe it indicates about people’s understanding—or lack of understanding—of their own power and significance?

7. How does the author bring a filmmaker’s eye to the novel? Discuss how the novel might be considered “cinematic.” How does the description of scenes and characters create a visual that shapes your feeling about the stories being told? What images did you find most striking and why?

8. Evaluate the motifs of dishonesty and betrayal. Who is dishonest and why do they choose to lie? What does Gladys say is at the root of many lies? What does she mean by this? Who is betrayed in the story and why do these betrayals take place? Would you say that any of the lies of betrayals were justified in some way? Why or why not?

9. Explore the theme of self-sufficiency. How does Gladys embody this trait? While Gladys extends help to those who need it, why does she try also to teach self-sufficiency to those she comes in contact with? Why is it particularly important to Gladys that women learn to be self-sufficient? What particular challenges do they face?

10. Examine the book’s complex dialogue about adoption. Why does Gladys tend to have a negative response when she hears that a child is being considered for adoption in the United States? What worries does Gladys have about adoption? What might the child lose by growing up in another culture? What happens to many of the children from Uganda who are sent abroad? Is Gladys right to worry about the adoption of the three siblings?

11. Gladys says: “Revenge was a fire that kept you warm, but then burned down your house” (150) and “a steady hand, not a fist, kept things from spinning out of control” (151). Do you agree with her? How does she seem to manage the anger she feels at times?

12. What does Mugera Junior Godfrey Victor Mananga Adams hope to become a when he is older? What does he hope to put a stop to? What does his wish tell us about the challenges of the society he inhabits? Why is Gladys surprised by his vulnerability?

13. Evaluate the theme of reliance. While Gladys teaches self-sufficiency, it is clear that the characters often rely on one another. Even Gladys relies on people to assist her in her mission. Who are some of the Good Samaritans who assist Gladys? Alternatively, what are some of the problems or difficulties associated with reliance on others?

14. At one point, Gladys wonders if she is too soft of a woman. She is aware that some people see her this way even though she had not previously thought so herself. What is this “softness” that she speaks of and do you believe it is more of a positive trait or a hindrance? Is Gladys too naïve? Would she be better served by being “harder” in some way? Discuss.

15. Consider the various reunions depicted in the book. What is it like when the children are returned to their relatives? What do these reunions have in common? Are they typically joyous occasions? Does any reconciliation or redemption take place? What surprised you most about some of the reunions that Yu depicts?

16. Who does Gladys say ultimately erased any doubt of her instinct toward kindness? How did they accomplish this? What ultimately becomes of Perseverance Gardens? Is Gladys able to accomplish her dream?

17. Would you say that Garden of Lost and Abandoned is ultimately an optimistic or hopeful tale? Why or why not? What lessons might we take from Gladys’s story and the other tales featured in the book? Discuss how these lessons might be turned into activism.

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