This month’s FYA Book Club selection is The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh. It’s a dreamy, timeless fantasy featuring a feminist female protagonist and beautiful writing. I first fell in love with that amazingly gorgeous cover, and I keep falling in love with the story every time I read it.
Check out the discussion questions below! (Spoilers ahead.)
P.S. If you’ve already read the book, feel free to add any other discussion questions of your own in the comments!
Icebreaker
The author uses real-life Korean folktales as a loose basis of her story (Shim Cheong, and the red ribbon of fate) and for the folktales Mina tells to the Sea God (like the Woodcutter). Axie Oh mentioned she used her personal favorites. Do you have a favorite folktale or parable that you loved when you were little?
Questions
1. Mina wants the young women in her world to be able to choose their own stories. She can be reckless, but she considers standing by doing nothing when someone she loves is in trouble more impossible than jumping in feet first. What did you think of Mina as our protagonist?
2. What did you think of this magical world of spirits, where some get a “second chance” at living if they want it hard enough? Did you have a part you liked best?
3. What did you think about the Gods and Goddesses of Mina’s world and her people’s relationship with them?
4. The idea of fate plays a big role in the novel. Do you think Mina was always fated to be with the Sea God (especially since she didn’t realize it was actually Shin) or do you think she wrote her own story with the actions she took?
5. The emperor and the Sea God’s have a unique connection. Did you find their actions understandable? Did knowing all the facts after seeing the memory of what happened one hundred years ago change your feelings on the characters?
6. Let’s talk about the romance between Mina and Shin. Did you like the way their story went, and how it ended?
7. Did you guess who Mask, Dai, and Miki were to Mina prior to the reveal? Did you like that twist that they were her ancestors helping out all along?
8. There’s a colorful cast of characters in Mina’s present and past. Were there any secondary characters you would’ve liked to have learned more about or would’ve wanted to spend more time with?
