1. There are a number of very fateful moments all of which involve dramatic departures—when Zayde is chased across the river away from Agneta and his family, when Mama slips out of her childhood home to follow the Fusguyers, when Barbara disappears—why do you suppose all these characters had to leave?  What characteristics do they share that made them believe that leaving was their only option?

2. Do you think that Zayde, Mama, Barbara and Elaine would have been happier individuals had they not kept so many secrets from their loved ones?  How might things have been different if Mama shared the real story about coming to America and meeting Papa?  On the other hand, are secrets sometimes necessary? How different (if at all) might Barbara’s choices have been had Mama not told her the truth?

3. Do you think that what happened between Barbara and Danny and Elaine the day before Danny was supposed to leave for Canada changed Barbara’s plans?  We know that Barbara had been planning to leave for quite awhile, but do you think she would have left in the same way had the confrontation not occurred?

4. Children of immigrants face the challenge of “negotiating the hyphen,” arriving at an identity that may (or may not) incorporate values and traditions from their family’s culture as well as the values and norms of their new country. What are the different ways in which Elaine, Barbara, and Danny negotiate the hyphen of being Jewish-American? In your own family, is there a hyphenated identity (or perhaps multiple hyphenated identities)? What are the ways in which you and other members of your family have negotiated your hyphen(s)?

5. What do you make of the detective, Philip Marlowe, the famous detective from Raymond Chandler’s THE BIG SLEEP, making an appearance in THE TIN HORSE?  Why do you suppose the author chose to give him a cameo?

6. Do you agree with Harriet’s observation, which comes up several times in the novel, that every sibling grows up in a different family? Why or why not?

7. By the end of the novel, who do you think is more affected by the reunion, Barbara or Elaine?  Why?

8. How do you imagine that Barbara’s and Elaine’s relationship will move forward after the book ends?

9. Why do you think we ascribe so much meaning to objects? Do you or your family have a talismanic object, like the tin horse, that symbolizes a significant story or person?  How has that object traveled through the years?  Is it a hidden object or something that is more prominently displayed in your home or elsewhere?

10. Is there anyone in your life, family or other, whom you consider “estranged” and with whom you wish to reconnect?  How do you imagine that reunion might unfold?