#15YearsBartimaeus: The Golem’s Eye Discussion

As part of #15YearsBartimaeus read-along hosted by Annemieke @ A Dance with Books, she is offering up discussion questions and encouraging participants to engage in a dialogue about each book in the series. There are many ways to participate, but I’ve chosen to write responses to all her discussion questions. It’s like having my own book club!

Questions below for The Golem’s Eye come from Annemieke’s discussion post.

~~Spoiler Alert!~~

No major spoilers are discussed in these questions, however, basic concepts of the book will be discussed. Content spoilers are blurred. Read at your own risk!

Before reading, where did you think Nathaniel would end up at after The Amulet of Samarkand? Is it similar to what happens in the book?

Doing my best to avoid spoilers, I had two theories: 1) This book would follow a completely different magician who summons Bartimaeus and we’d only meet Nathaniel as an ancillary character going forward, but still explore the Resistance or 2) Nathaniel would be, well, more grown-up than 14… 18? Something like that. And he would get into trouble again and summon Bartimaeus to get out of trouble.

I expected more sneaking and adventuring than what I got, but it’s still a great story. Stoud could have taken The Golem’s Eye MANY different directions! He had a whole world wide open to him at the end of The Amulet of Samarkand. This direction makes sense, though.

We get a new character we focus on in this book though we briefly met her in The Amulet of Samarkand. How did you feel about this addition? What do you think her background and point of view adds to the story?

I loved the additional voice of Kitty. Without her voice we wouldn’t understand the corruption or cruelty of the ruling magician class nearly as well. In fact, seeing Julius Tallow from both Nathaniel and Kitty’s perspectives is quite enlightening. Tallow is a powerful, cruel, self-centered, corrupt man in the eyes of Kitty. But he is a bumbling, pathetic, unambitious, puppet in Nathaniel’s eyes. Yes, Kitty’s voice is critical for moving the overarching plot Stoud brought into this book forward.

That said… I don’t feel like Stroud did a great job making Nathaniel and Kitty’s voices all that different. I had to check after the first few paragraphs in a few chapters to see if this was from Kitty or Nathaniel’s perspective. I hope to see a greater separation between their two voices in Ptolemy’s Gate.

Nathaniel calls on Bartimaeus again. Do you believe his reasons for calling on Bartimaeus again or do you think he has other reasons for it?

Yes and no? I believe Nathaniel because he believes it. He has no where else to turn and feels confident with Bartimaeus. At the same time, I think that Nathaniel has gotten lonely with all these power-hungry aloof magicians. On one level, I turly believe Nathaniel is trying to hold on to who he is amongst all this chaos. Therefore, he reaches for the familiar. Someone who knows him.

We visit Prague. Do you feel we got to know more about its relationship with Britain?

Yes! And I have hopes that we will visit America in the next book so we can better understand the relationship between American and Britain.

I wish we had spent more time getting to know Prague’s history. It could have been easy with more Bartimaeus flashbacks, a longer prologue, or perhaps a few more adventures with Nathaniel and Bartimaeus in Prague. There is a lot more here to unpack. I’d love to get tea with Stroud and understand the bigger picture he has for this world he’s developed.

Here’s the best part about Stoud’s world-building: It’s obvious to the reader that we are exploring only the tip of the iceberg. The way Stroud writes about his world, it’s obvious that he and the characters present in it understand a much deeper, more complex history than we are exposed to. Plus, the Commoner understanding of this history is different than the Magician understanding — and we see that reflected in the characters! Brilliant, brilliant writing.

Throughout the book, Bartimaeus likes to poke at Nathaniel. Do you agree with him that Nathaniel has changed for the worst? What is the worst thing Nathaniel did in this book you think?

I do believe this, but I don’t think Nathaniel is without hope. He is only 14. The influences in his life have been horrible and corrupt. Of course he is going to turn that direction! He is still young and easily influenced. Nathaniel believes himself to be more powerful and intelligent than he truly is- this is dangerous as it leads him to make very poor decisions.

I agree with Bartimaeus. The worst thing Nathaniel does in The Golem’s Eye is ask Bartimaeus to kidnap Jakob Hyrnek followed by lying to Kitty about letting her and Jakob go once they have the Staff of Gladstone. But we do see some good in Nathaniel at times. I have hope he will become a better person in the next book; I have hope he will rise above this.

One of the discussion points in this book is whether or not what the resistance does is terrorism even if it is perhaps not quite called that. What is your view on that?

100% Terrorism. The scene where Kitty, Fred, and Stanley are off to steal magical items in the factory early on exists to help us separate the morals of Kitty from the rest. Stroud presents us this moment when Stanley and Fred defy Kitty so they can set fire to the factory to show that Kitty separates herself from these acts. While she believes in the cause, she doesn’t believe in hurting anyone (though, it is unclear if this belief is universal or only for Commoners).

History is written by the victors. The definition of terrorism is: the unlawful use of violence and intimidation, especially against civilians, in the pursuit of political aims.

It’s clear that the Resistance crosses that line during this book, whether they meant to or not.

How do you feel about the addition of Honorius to the overall plot? In what way did you think he added something to the story?

The addition of Honorius is essential to the resolution of the plot in The Golem’s Eye, but I think he’s here to make a connection between books. Honorius and Bartimaeus have a discussion about what it means to be trapped by the magicians. Who is a slave the who is free? What does it mean to be free? How can the imps, djinni, and afrits gain control of their lives again?

Paired with the conversations Kitty and Bartimaeus have, I believe we will see a revolution in the next book. Brace yourself, upper-class Magicians!

Do you think Bartimaeus should have told Nathaniel what Kitty told him about the resistance and Hopkins? Why or why not?

See previous answer. Seriously, Bartimaeus is a slave, trapped to do the whim of whoever is his master. Yes, Bartimaeus could have told Nathaniel. But that won’t help Bartimaeus “stick it to the man”, as it were. Bartimaeus is chaotic neutral. He values his own liberty but does not strive to protect the freedom of others. He chafes under authority, resents restrictions, and challenges traditions. But he also won’t intentionally cause disruption unless ordered.

Do you agree with Nathaniel that there is more to the story of Duvall coming for Gladstone’s staff? What do you expect to see in the next book regarding that?

Heck yes! It’s obvious that there is a much bigger bad pulling the strings in the background. Personally, I believe that Quentin Makepeace is the right-hand man of the big bad, if not THE big bad. Someone wants to topple Britain’s empire. And I hope it’s someone we’ve already met. It’ll be a bit disappointing if it’s a new character in the next book, if only because it means I couldn’t have figured it out yet! XD

Where some of your questions at the end of The Amulet of Samarkand answered? If yes, which ones? Do you still have any questions left or did you get new ones?

Yes. The easiest questions were answered: Who is the Resistance? What do they want? Will Nathaniel be a major character in The Golem’s Eye? If so, why will he call Bartimaeus again?

New questions include: Who is the big bad? Why are we at war with America? What is the connection with the big bad and Prague? Are there other cities against Britain? What is Makepeace’s role in this whole plot? Are there ANY good magicians?!

Throughout the first two books, Bartimaeus mentions Ptolemy every now and then and he seems to mean something to him. With the next book being called Ptolemy’s Gate, what are your expectations regarding Ptolemy?

I’m not certain what to expect in the next book. I am hopeful that we will have flashbacks to Bartimaeus’s relationship with Ptolemy. I also hope that we begin to see parallels between Ptolemy and Nathaniel in a positive way, though I expect we’ll see more of them in Kitty than Nathaniel. I have a feeling we are leading up to a revolution, and I hope the positive connection Ptolemy and Bartimaeus made will lead us towards freedom for all involved: Commoners, Demons, and Magicians.

Annemieke’s questions have gotten more challenging and thoughtful in this version. Whew! I really had to use my noggin to answer these. I wish we had the opportunity to discuss in real life. There is a lot to unpack in this story! I cannot wait to see what happens in the next book.

My #15YearsBeartimaeus Posts:

The Amulet of Samarkand — Discussion
The Golem’s Eye — Discussion
Ptolemy’s Gate — Discussion
The Ring of Solomon — Discussion

What do you think?

• Are you participating in 15 Years of Bartimaeus? Link your The Golem’s Eye review or discussion post below!
• What are your reflections on Annemieke’s questions above?
• Do you enjoy this format of a blog post? If not, how would you recommend I update it for future books?
• What discussion questions would you add to Annemieke’s list?