Nobody's Magic

In this glittering triptych novel, Suzette, Maple and Agnes, three Black women with albinism, call Shreveport, Louisiana home. At the bustling crossroads of the American South and Southwest, these three women find themselves at the crossroads of their own lives.

Suzette, a pampered twenty-year‑old, has been sheltered from the outside world since a dangerous childhood encounter. Now, a budding romance with a sweet mechanic allows Suzette to seek independence, which unleashes dark reactions in those closest to her. In discovering her autonomy, Suzette is forced to decide what she is willing to sacrifice in order to make her own way in the world.

Maple is reeling from the unsolved murder of her free‑spirited mother. She flees the media circus and her judgmental grandmother by shutting herself off from the world in a spare room of the motel where she works. One night, at a party, Maple connects with Chad, someone who may understand her pain more than she realizes, and she discovers that the key to her mother's death may be within her reach.

Agnes is far from home, working yet another mind‑numbing job. She attracts the interest of a lonely security guard and army veteran who’s looking for a traditional life for himself and his young son. He’s convinced that she wields a certain “magic,” but Agnes soon unleashes a power within herself that will shock them both and send her on a trip to confront not only her family and her past, but also herself.

This novel, told in three parts, is a searing meditation on grief, female strength, and self‑discovery set against a backdrop of complicated social and racial histories.Nobody's Magic is a testament to the power of family—the ones you're born in and the ones you choose. And in these three narratives, among the yearning and loss, each of these women may find a seed of hope for the future.

This discussion guide was shared in partnership with Grand Central Publishing.

Book club questions for Nobody's Magic by Destiny O. Birdsong

Use these discussion questions to guide your next book club meeting.

Having been sheltered her entire life, Suzette is gaining new skills and a greater understanding of her family and friends, and she must finally face the ways people in her life see her. Discuss how Suzette actively learns more about the world around her and accomplishes her goals. Discuss the ways in which the people around her helped or hindered her from reaching those goals. How did her relationships with those people evolve?

Maple’s story examines three very different women: Maple, Momi, and Nana. In what ways do Maple and her grandmother approach their grief differently? Why do you think that is, and what could they learn from each other?

Discuss how Agnes’s relationship with her sister, Berniece, shapes her life. What does she gain from the relationship and how does their relationship hurt her?

Discuss the way Agnes’s section being written in the third person informed how you thought of her.

Compare and contrast Suzette’s, Maple’s, and Agnes’s different relationships to themselves, their attitudes towards self-love and acceptance, and the ways they take on other’s perceptions of them as women with albinism.

From losing her virginity to Doni and kissing her best friend, Drina, discuss the evolution of Suzette’s sexual exploration. What are the similarities and differences in what drives Suzette, Maple, and Agnes’s needs and desires?

Discuss the ways in which Chad helps Maple as she copes with the loss of her mother. What lessons about grief, loss, and life does she gain, and how was Chad able to help her do so?

Compare and contrast Agnes’s relationship with Colin versus Prime. How does her relationship with these men affect how she sees herself?

Discuss the ways in which the men in Suzette’s, Maple’s, and Agnes’s lives help or hinder them from reaching their goals.

All three women have difficult, fractured relationships with their parental figures. Discuss your thoughts on the strength of those family ties versus the ways Suzette, Maple, and Agnes perceive them?

Nobody’s Magic takes place in Shreveport, Louisiana. How do you think the setting shapes the characters and events of the story? In what ways do you think the novel would be different if it took place somewhere else?

Nobody's Magic Book Club Questions PDF

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