S2 E12: Hiddensee by Gregory McGuire

Bound Sisters Podcast: Hiddensee by Gregory Maguire

This month we dove into Hiddensee by Gregory Maguire — a Nutcracker origin story that was... well, not exactly what we were expecting. If you’re into dark fairy tale vibes, complex backstories, and a slow, twisty burn, this one’s for you. But be warned — we had feelings. Lots of them.

First off, let’s clear something up.

“I did think it was weird that she kissed his feet. That did happen, right?”“No, no. He wanted to kiss her feet.”“Oh, he wanted to kiss her feet! Okay, I was like what?”“He was obsessed with her. Like it wasn’t super weird, but he definitely was into her.”

So yes, we started off strong — clearing up foot-kissing confusion.

The book follows Dirk, who eventually becomes Drosselmeyer from The Nutcracker, and it paints a much deeper and darker picture of how he came to be the mysterious godfather figure. But if you’re expecting a cozy Christmas fantasy, you might want to reset those expectations.

“This was not a light read.”

That line pretty much summed up our group consensus. Hiddensee is reflective, philosophical, and sometimes confusing. It’s about fate, free will, belief, and how trauma shapes the lives we lead.

“It felt like one of those books that I should have been reading in a literature class and not necessarily just for fun.”“There were a lot of layers.”

We spent a good chunk of the episode trying to unpack some of those layers — from the allegorical forest scenes to Dirk’s mysterious backstory, to the strange puppet-like people and the literal “Stag Father” in the woods. Yeah, it gets real mythical real fast.

Still, there was something beautiful about the writing. Maguire knows how to turn a phrase, even when you’re not totally sure what just happened.

“I highlighted so many random sentences because I was like, that was so beautiful, even though I don’t really know what I’m reading right now.”

Relatable.

One standout discussion was about how Dirk kept showing up in people’s lives almost like a force of fate — not good, not bad, just present.

“He just kind of floats through people’s lives and he’s like a shadow. He’s just there.”

We also laughed about how every time we thought something big was about to happen, the book would veer off into philosophical musings or vague nature metaphors. Like the snow globe moment. What was that?

“He just makes this snow globe, and it’s the Nutcracker story, and then he gives it to the girl, and it’s the Nutcracker story. The end.”“And it was like, wait, what?”“I literally had to go back and re-listen.”

Despite the confusion, there was something oddly compelling about the slow unraveling of Dirk’s life — the way Maguire peeled back the layers of a man shaped by abandonment, illness, grief, and eventually a strange kind of hope.

“He’s a tragic character, but not in a melodramatic way. Just in a very human way.”

One of our favorite things to do as sisters is find the funny, even in a story as heavy as this one. So naturally, we cracked up at ourselves for not knowing if we were supposed to understand what was happening or just vibe with it.

“I felt so dumb. I was like, should I get this?”“Yeah, it’s one of those books that makes you feel like you're missing something, but you’re not.”“Right. Because maybe there’s nothing to get.”“Maybe that’s the point.”“Maybe the magic is just the vibes.”

And that was sort of the final takeaway: Hiddensee is a vibe. It’s not here to hand you a tidy plot or a clearly drawn moral. It’s mysterious, lyrical, sometimes frustrating, but definitely thought-provoking.

“It’s like the anti-Christmas Christmas book.”

If you’re in the mood for something beautifully strange and not too straightforward — or just want to hear us try to explain it to each other — you’re going to love this episode.

Ready to dive in?

• Listen to our Hiddensee episode now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you tune in.

• Leave us a rating and review — it means the world and helps other book lovers find our little corner of the podcast world.

• Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok @boundsisters for behind-the-scenes moments, bookish fun, and the occasional foot-kissing debate.

Thanks for hanging out with us — we’ll see you next month with a whole new book and even more sisterly banter.