Reading Guide

ALL THINGS UNDER THE MOON

Questions for Discussion and Enhance Your Reading or Book Club / Extension Activities

By Chelsea Kowalski

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Questions for Discussion

  1. Na-Young must learn to hold many secrets throughout her relationships. How does secrecy influence relationships within Na-Young’s family members? 
  2. How does Na-Young negotiate the tension between tradition and personal desire? In what ways do cultural expectations shape their choices—and where does she redefine them?
  3. Describe the relationship between Na-Young and her best friend Yeon-Soo. How does their bond influence the choices they make when faced with danger and uncertainty?
  4. Na-Young often suppresses her own fears and dreams to meet the expectations of those around her. Consider some consequences of this repression. How do Na-Young’s internal struggles define her actions?
  5. Reflect on the recurring presence of the moon in Na-Young’s world—from her village to the wider landscape of Korea. What might the moon symbolize in terms of longing, cycles of change, or cultural memory?
  6.  Na-Young starts as a young woman with limited options. How do her goals and sense of self evolve by the novel’s end? 
  7. How does Na-Young’s understanding of marriage shift from the beginning of the novel to the end? What has she learned about love, control, and self-determination?
  8. Lady Lee asserts traditional ideas about women’s roles, yet Na-Young dreams of education and agency. Discuss how traditional gender expectations shape and constrain each female character in the novel.
  9. Consider how women support each other in the novel—whether in village tasks by the river or in shared secret gatherings in Seoul. How does female community shape survival and resistance?
  10. Each chapter is titled after a key element in that chapter,like “Monsoon”. In what ways does the element named in the title—often weather, object, or symbol— reflect the emotional state of that chapter’s main characters?
  11. Through the novel, we see Na-Young, Oppa, and Yeon-Soo commit to extraordinary acts of sacrifice, sometimes motivated by love and sometimes obligation. Can acts of duty also be acts of love? Where do characters struggle to distinguish between the two?
  12. When Na-Young first arrives in Seoul, she is confronted with new social hierarchies and dangers. How does the city challenge her assumptions about freedom and opportunity?
  13. Consider the role of education beyond literacy. How do books, teachers, and learning spaces expand Na-Young’s understanding of herself and the wider world?
  14. How does fear operate in the novel—fear of shame, fear of occupation forces, fear of social disgrace? Which characters act out of fear, and which resist it?
  15. Nature plays a significant role beyond the moon—including rain, rivers, orchards, and seasons. How do these natural elements mirror the instability or hope present in the characters’ lives?
  16. Na-Young’s perception of her village shifts after she leaves it. How does distance change her understanding of home?
  17. Who would you want to play Na-Young in a film adaptation?
  18. What are three key words you think sum up this novel?
  19. The title All Things Under the Moon draws on the connection Na-Young experiences throughout the very different parts of her journey. Consider the meaning of the title when thinking of Na-Young’s destiny.
  20. How does the presence of animals in these early chapters establish a sense of innocence and rural stability?
  21. Headless Chicken is considerately cared for by Yeon-Soo and viewed as a miracle in the village. What does this say about the value placed on life?
  22. Na-Young watches a woman cut up a decapitated hare with morbid curiosity and unfamiliarity. What does the use of animal imagery and decapitation suggest about Na-Young’s innocence? How might this moment foreshadow the human brutality she will later encounter?

Enhance Your Reading / Book Club Extension Activities

  1. The novel is set in Korea under Japanese occupation in the 1920s. Research the political and social conditions of Korea at this time. How does this real context deepen your understanding of Na-Young’s choices?
  2. Write a diary entry from Na-Young during her first days in Seoul. What fears, hopes, or surprises does she record?
  3. Choose two female characters (e.g., Na-Young’s mother and Yeon-Soo) and present how their roles, choices, and agency differ within the story’s cultural constraints.
  4. Visit a Korean heritage museum, cultural centre, or event. Reflect on how cultural traditions and history seen there relate to the experiences of Na-Young and the villagers.
  5. Interview a family member about a moment when cultural expectations shaped a life decision. Reflect on similarities or contrasts with the novel.
  6. Create a short poem or visual art piece inspired by the moon as it functions in the novel—focusing on themes of change, longing, or reflection.