American Mermaid

1. Mermaid stories have been around forever. How does this book both fit into and turn the typical mermaid trope on its head?

2. Discuss the novel within the novel. How do you think it would work as a stand-alone piece? How does it serve the larger novel as a literary device?

3. What do you think of movie and TV adaptations of books? Are there any that you think are successful? What separates the good ones from the bad? Do you think Murphy and Randy are right about what will make the movie sell?

4. Have you ever been to LA? What do you think of the culture? Discuss Penelope’s inability to walk anywhere worth walking to in LA and how this relates to Sylvia’s inability to walk on land.

5. When she moves to LA, Penelope is immersed in a specific kind of social lifestyle. What types of relationships does she build by attending parties? Are any of the connections she makes real? How do they compare to her relationship with Derek?

6. Discuss the meaning of home and what it means to be and feel at home somewhere. Why is it so important to Penelope that she is not living in a hotel?

7. Both Penelope and Sylvia have contentious relationships with their families. How do these dynamics play out and how do they shape the goals of each character?

8.  Discuss the relationship between Sylvia and Masahiro. How does it develop and change throughout the book?

9. Discuss the way Penelope views sexuality, how this translates to Sylvia and the other mermaids, and the ways Murphy and Randy try to change this view in the movie script.

10. What does it mean to you to sell out? Is it possible to maintain a balance between monetary concerns and the desire to remain authentic?

11. Discuss the power of social media in determining what becomes a success. Were you surprised by Stem Hollander’s identity?

12. How does Penelope interact with young adults, both as a teacher and with the teenagers she encounters after her reading?

13. How does the contemporary climate crisis shape Penelope’s world versus Sylvia’s world? Does its appearance in fiction change the way you think about the climate crisis or the ways you might fight it? 

14. Sylvia thinks her legs are useless until she discovers the secret of her origins. Have you ever had anything that you thought was a limitation that ended up being a superpower?