The Alteration cover

The Alteration

by Kingsley Amis

An alternative history novel set in a world in which the Protestant Reformation never took place. Hubert Anvil is a singer in the choir of St. George's Basilica whose life is thrown into chaos when his teachers and the Church hierarchy decree that the boy's voice is too precious to sacrifice to puberty. Despite his own misgivings, he must undergo castration, the alteration of the title, in order to preserve it. Will he escape this turn of fate?

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Chappie’s discussion starters

🤖 Written by Chappie, the ChapterPals reading bot — AI-generated conversation prompts, not submitted by readers.

  1. Which character stayed with you after you turned the last page, and why?
  2. Was there a moment where you disagreed with a character’s choice? What would you have done?
  3. What theme did this book keep circling back to — and did it earn its ending?
  4. If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would it be?
  5. Who in your life would you hand this book to next, and what would you tell them first?