Without a Summer (36 page)

BOOK: Without a Summer

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LOINTAINE VISION.
French for “distance seeing.” It is a tube of glamour that allows one to see things at a distance. The threads must be constantly managed or the image becomes static.

OMBRÉ.
A fold of glamour that shades from one colour to another over its length. This technique was later emulated in textile by dip-dying.

NŒUD MARIN.
A robust knot used for tying glamour threads. This was originally used by sailors for joining two lines, but adapted by glamourists for similar purposes. In English, this is known as a Carrick Bend.

PETITE RÉPÉTITION.
French for “small repetition.” This is a way of having a fold of glamour repeat itself in what we would now call a fractal pattern. These occur in nature in the patterns of fern fronds and pinecones.

SPHÈRE OBSCURCIE.
French for “invisible bubble.” It is literally a bubble of magic to make the person inside it invisible.

Reading Group Guide

• Had you heard the term Luddite before reading
Without a Summer
? The term is often used today to mean people who avoid technology. How do you think the historical Luddites differ from the modern usage?

• Did you learn any new historical facts from
Without a Summer
? If so, what?

•
Without a Summer
is set in 1816 during the historical “year without a summer,” when global cooling occurred after a massive volcanic explosion. How did this setting enhance or take away from the story?

• How did you feel when Melody got spectacles? Have you ever had a situation in your life that was similar?

• At several points in the book, the narrator directly addresses the reader. Do you think this enhanced or distracted from the story?

• How would you react if someone in the real world created a glamour in front of you?

• How do you feel about Vincent’s revelation about Miss de Clare? Would you be angry at your own partner if you were placed in a similar situation?

• Kowal says that she modelled part of
Without a Summer
on Jane Austen’s
Emma.
What parallels do you see between the two books?

• Did you read
Shades of Milk and Honey
and
Glamour in Glass
before this? How did that affect your reading?

• Do you think
Without a Summer
could help serve as an intermediate step to introduce new readers to Jane Austen?

• Kowal addresses both prejudice and courtship in this novel. What do you think the major theme of the story is?

TOR BOOKS BY MARY ROBINETTE KOWAL

The Glamourist Histories

Shades of Milk and Honey

Glamour in Glass

Without a Summer

About the Author

Mary Robinette Kowal was the 2008 recipient of the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer and a Hugo winner for her story “For Want of a Nail.” Her first two novels,
Shades of Milk and Honey
and
Glamour in Glass,
began the Glamourist Histories, which
Without a Summer
continues. She served two terms as the vice president of Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. A professional puppeteer and voice actor, she lives in Chicago with her husband, Rob, and more than a dozen manual typewriters.

www.maryrobinettekowal.com

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.