2026 Reading Challenge
The Mother Code

Questions About The Mother Code

by Carole Stivers (Goodreads Author)

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Answered Questions (2)

Does this book make anyone else think of the children's sci-fi novel "The Search for WondLa?" I haven't read "The Mother Code" yet; just wondering if anyone else has read both books and what the similarities are.
Rebecca Wolken Yes! That's exactly what I was thinking of! Also that movie called I Am Mother. …moreYes! That's exactly what I was thinking of! Also that movie called I Am Mother. (less)
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Is the Hopi myth about the Silver Spirits an actual thing, or did the author fabricate it for the purposes of the story? I've searched and searched online but can't find anything about it. Am I just looking in the wrong places or is the "Hopi prophecy" just made up for the book? If the latter is true, it bugs me...
Carole Stivers The idea of the "Silver Spirits" is not based on known Hopi prophecy, but rather on a vision which is experienced by Nova Susquetewa's father, Albert,…moreThe idea of the "Silver Spirits" is not based on known Hopi prophecy, but rather on a vision which is experienced by Nova Susquetewa's father, Albert, in The Mother Code (see pages 77-78 of the printed copy). According to Nova, who recounts her father's vision, he had the vision when she was eight years old. In my notes, I had Nova being 24 years old at the time of her mission. Thus, her father's vision would have occurred in our future - in the year 2036.

So yes, I fabricated this idea of the Silver Spirits for the purposes of the story - a vision that for us, occurs at a future time. And though Albert's wife Talasi believes in it in my story, this idea did not even fictionally become an accepted part of Hopi lore - even Nova later surmises that her father may have seen fighter jets training, and mistaken them for something else.

Like everything that happens in this book (I hope), this "vision" of Albert's is purely fictional. In fact, I was careful not to base any key plot points in the book on recorded Hope lore - to respect that lore as sacred to those who believe in it.

Hope that helps!(less)
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