Etna

This story is told through Etna’s eyes. How does the perspective of a dog shape the story? What language and sensory details might have been different if it were from the perspective of a human?

Etna is an odyssey, in the sense that it depicts a journey home. What about this classic form is transmuted by this story?

Why do you think the two epigraphs were chosen? Revisiting them now after finishing the story, do they hold a different resonance?

Soojin is the only human who can understand Etna. What does this tell you about her character? Why do you think she possesses this special understanding?

Animals seem to have no such language barriers with one another—Etna speaks with a donkey, a cat, a bird, and with other dogs. Why do you think Yoon made this creative choice? How does communication create closeness between some characters and distance between others?

Which encounters of Etna’s did you find the most moving? Why?

This war unfolds in a fictional, present-day country. Why do you think Yoon chose to fictionalize the country instead of choosing one we know?

As Etna follows the train tracks to the city, he says, “I was aware, with a new intensity, of my aloneness” (68). How does loneliness and isolation shape Etna’s journey? How does this inform the importance of pack, of community, and of home?

What is your interpretation of the ending?