The Midnight Library

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay. 

Scaffolded/Short-Answer Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the below bulleted outlines. Cite details from the novel over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. Mrs. Elm is present throughout Nora’s lives in many different ways.

• What is Mrs. Elm’s role in Nora’s life? What does she symbolize to Nora? (topic sentence)
• How do Mrs. Elm’s many appearances and conversations with Nora affect Nora’s realizations about herself and her life? Discuss 3 instances in which Mrs. Elm influences and/or inspires Nora and use details from the text to support your ideas.
• Finally, discuss in your concluding sentence or sentences how Mrs. Elm’s character connects to the theme of Small Acts of Kindness.

1. Nora explores many different lives but ultimately decides to stay in her root life.

• Why does Nora ultimately decide to return to her root life? (topic sentence)
• What are 3 ways Nora’s perception of herself changes over the course of the novel? Use details from 3 different lives to support your argument.
• Finally, in your concluding sentence or sentences, connect Nora’s character development to the theme of The Power of Perception.

3. Henry David Thoreau is Nora’s favorite philosopher; references to his influence surface during her many lives.

• How does Henry David Thoreau shape Nora’s thinking about her life? (topic sentence)
• What are 3 instances in which Thoreau is mentioned, and what is the effect of each mention on Nora or the narrative?
• Ultimately, in your concluding sentence or sentences, tie these allusions to Thoreau to the theme of The Point of Life Is Life Itself.

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by text details, and a conclusion.

1. Nora learns about the idea of “sliders” from Hugo Lefèvre, who has experience with his own version of the Midnight Library. How does their conversation about sliders and moving from life to life affect Nora throughout the rest of the novel? What does Nora ultimately learn about what she wants from life? Connect these questions to the theme of The Point of Life Is Life Itself and use examples from the text about Nora’s development to support your ideas.

2. Nora wishes to try a life in which her mother is still alive, but she is unable to do so; she likewise experiences lives in which her dead father is alive, and her live brother is dead. What role does family play in Nora’s life? Does she come to value her family members differently throughout the course of The Midnight Library? Is it significant that she chooses against spending more time with her father, opting instead to return to her root life, where he passed away when she was a child? Ultimately, what might Haig be suggesting about Small Acts of Kindness and the role of family in this theme?

3. The Book of Regrets holds all of Nora’s regrets; as she moves through lives in the Midnight Library, she is able to remove some regrets from the book. How does Nora’s relationship with her regrets change from the beginning to the end of the novel? How does she address some of these regrets? What does she learn about how to understand herself and the effect of her choices? Connect these questions to the theme of The Power of Perception and to the way in which Nora’s view of herself is different at the novel’s close.