BKMT READING GUIDES
Sunrise on the Battery
by Beth Webb Hart
Paperback : 304 pages
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At last, Mary Lynn and Jackson Scoville are living the life they've dreamed of. Two self-described "small town bumpkins" from Round O, South Carolina, they ...
Introduction
Now that she's arrived at her ultimate address, will Mary Lynn's longed-for view of the harbor satisfy the craving of her heart?
At last, Mary Lynn and Jackson Scoville are living the life they've dreamed of. Two self-described "small town bumpkins" from Round O, South Carolina, they made a small fortune selling the little gems of lowcountry real estate Jackson inherited and now they are living in the heart of Charleston, South Carolina, carefully working their way up the social ladder in hopes of meeting their ultimate goal: to give their three daughters the life they themselves never had.
But the long-forgotten God of Mary Lynn's childhood seems to be trying to get her attention in clear and unusual ways. So clear and strange she can no longer deny it. When Mary Lynn prays for Jackson to open his mind and heart to God, her prayers are answered beyond her wildest imaginings. Now Jackson's dramatic conversion (which includes street witnessing, giving away a lot of money, and inviting poor, desperate and marginalized people into their home) is threatening their social status as well as their family mission statement. Is she willing to go along with him?
What would it be like to go "all out" for God? Jackson, a sharp and focused Type A man, is unafraid and willing to go all the way. Mary Lynn has her doubts.
Excerpt
Chapter 1Mary Lynn Scoville
December 24, 2009
It was the morning before Christmas, and Mary Lynn was preparing for her sunrise jog around the tip of the Charleston Peninsula. She stretched her thighs and calves in the gray light of her piazza, then she bounded out of her South Battery home, travelling west toward the Coast Guard Station like she did every morning as part of her effort to “finally get back in shape” since her fortieth birthday, eight short months ago. ...
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Discussion Questions
From the publisher:1. In the opening of the novel, Mary Lynn thinks God is trying to get her attention. What do you make of what happened to her on her morning jog the day before Christmas?
2. Do you believe God can break through the seemingly natural order of things and heal a wounded leg? Why or why not?
3. In the beginning of the story, do you think Mary Lynn and Jackson have a strong marriage? In the Christmas day scene where Catherine receives a new car, Mary Lynn says she has become a woman “who bites her tongue.” What has caused this committed relationship to begin to deteriorate?
4. Jackson feels that his father woefully shortchanged him during his childhood. Why? In what ways are both Jackson and Mary Lynn still bound by (and living in reaction to) their childhood wounds?
5. Before Jackson’s conversion, what kind of parent is he? Consider his original mission statement. Why is he determined to give his children the life he never had? Is there a down-side or danger to this mission?
6. Why is it necessary for Catherine to have a point-of-view in this story? What do you gain from her perspective?
7. What kind of parent do you think Catherine will grow up to be?
8. There are several “running” scenes in this book. What does the act of running come to symbolize for Catherine and Mary Lynn?
9. Describe Jackson’s conversion and Mary Lynn’s reaction to it. Why does she have such a hard time once her prayer for her husband to have a faith gets answered? What does his newfound faith reveal about her faith and the idols in her own life?
10. What do you make of Jackson’s zealousness? Why doesn’t he have any inhibitions about sharing his faith or about reaching out to all walks of life? Do you find his zeal refreshing or do you think he’s too pushy? Why or why not?
11. How has Mary Lynn and Jackson’s relationship changed by the end of the story? In what ways has their marriage been renewed?
12. The Scoville family mission statement changes dramatically over the course of the novel. By the end of the story the new mission is as follows: To love the Lord back with all of our heart, all our soul and all our mind and to love our neighbors to the ends of the earth as we would love ourselves. Imagine the Scovilles five years from now. What do their lives look like?
Notes From the Author to the Bookclub
Note from the author: Here are the questions I had in mind when I wrote Sunrise on the Battery: What would it look like if we really loved each other—if we had no inhibitions about sharing our faith and our very lives with a hurting world? How would we really spend our time and our money? And what impact would this have on our own families, especially our children? What impact would it have on our communities, our country and the world? I always begins my writing with a question I don’t know the answer to, and I was inspired by these questions after reading David Platt’s book Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream. His book uncovered blind spots in my own life and helped me fully imagine just where my characters’ uninhibited faith might take them. Here is the take-away: Mary Lynn Scoville has everything anyone could desire—a handsome husband, three beautiful daughters and a ticket into the social elite of Charleston, S.C. But after a miraculous answer to a prayer on her behalf, Mary Lynn decides to pray that her husband will discover the faith she loves. But when her prayers are answered, she finds her world turned upside down and is forced to deal with the idols she has created in her own life. Jackson Scoville is a man on a mission. Growing up deprived of the finer things in life, he wants more for his children. His mission is to give his girls the best—a top-rate education, exposure and immersion in the fine arts and frequent opportunities to see the big wide world. “Not just education, baby—cultivation,” he is known to say. But when he discovers the truth of Scripture, his focus takes a quick turn—a turn his family may not like. While writing about the lives of Mary Lynn, Jackson and their daughters, I hope to show my readers how God can change a life and inspire a family. My prayer is that the story will shine a reflection on my readers’ own struggles and fears, and that they will be inspired to examine their own lives and discover what really matters. (This is what happened for me when I wrote the story.)Book Club Recommendations
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