Our Book Of The Month for January is Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier. For our online Book Clubbers we have some questions below about the book for you to get involved with. Either answer in the comments section or use as discussion points at your next Book Club. Happy Book Clubbing!
Rebecca – The Blurb
On a trip to the South of France, the shy heroine of Rebecca falls in love with Maxim de Winter, a handsome widower. Although his proposal comes as a surprise, she happily agrees to marry him. But as they arrive at her husband’s home, Manderley, a change comes over Maxim, and the young bride is filled with dread. Friendless in the isolated mansion, she realises that she barely knows him. In every corner of every room is the phantom of his beautiful first wife, Rebecca, and the new Mrs de Winter walks in her shadow.
Discussion Points
The following are written with the presumption you have read Rebecca. If you haven’t, bookmark the post for now so you can come back and answer the questions later.
- Why is the second Mrs de Winter’s first name never revealed?
- The ending is deliciously ambiguous, what do you think happened to Manderley? If it was set on fire who do you think started it?
- The beginning of the book makes it clear that the second Mrs de Winter is still with Maxim. Did this spoil the book for you in any way?
- We only have the second wife’s impressions of Rebecca. Given that she is the second wife and most people (save the man who murdered her and his sister) seemed to love her, is it possible to paint Rebecca in a different light?
- Du Maurier made the shocking decision to have Maxim murder Rebecca whilst he thought she was pregnant. She then seemed to shy away from this decision by revealing that Rebecca was actually terminally ill, thus it was OK for Maxim to kill her as that is what she would have wanted. Do you think this was the right decision by Du Maurier?
- Is it right that Maxim got away with murdering Rebecca?
Get Involved
Feel free to answer as little or as many of the questions as you like. Post your replies below, discuss with us on social media using @BookSocialUK, or pose some questions of your own. If you enjoyed answering our questions, have a go at our last month’s Get Involved: Christmas Pudding.
And come back tomorrow to read our #BigReview of Rebecca.
