Book Club Discussion Questions
For supplemental discussion material see our Beyond the Book article, The Frank Landslide and our BookBrowse Review of The Outlander.
Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!
Introduction
In 1903 a mysterious young woman flees alone across the west, one heart-pounding
step ahead of the law. At 19, she has just become a widowand her husband's
murderer. As bloodhounds track Mary Boulton through the mountains, she is
tormented by mad visions and by the knowledge that her two cold-blooded
brothers-in-law are hot on her trail, determined to hunt her down in revenge for
their brother's death. Responding to little more than the primitive fight for
life, she flees further and further into the wilderness, and into the wilds of
her own mind, encountering an unforgettable cast of eccentrics along the way.
With the stunning prose and captivating mood of great works like Charles
Frazier's
Cold Mountain or early Cormac McCarthy, Gil Adamson's
extraordinary debut novel weds a brilliant literary style to the gripping,
moving, picaresque tale of one woman's desperate journey.
Questions for Discussion
- When we meet the widow, she is emotionally remote, frightened, and
unable to form a plan. She has a strong will to survive, but few skills. By
the end of the book she seems like a different woman. Is she a different
person, or the same person with new skills? Never mind fictional characters,
is it possible for people to change?
- What is the cause of the widow's madness? Is this a manifestation of
severe post-partum depression, or has Mary always been a little off? Will
she always be, or is there some hope?
- Regarding religion, the author says of Mary that "she had a child's
disinterest in any father other than her own." Does Mary truly understand
faith? Does she herself have any faith? Has she has been given any real
instruction in faith? Does one need instruction? Of all the characters in
this novel, who has the greatest sense of faith, or of the divine?
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- How does the author develop themes of identity and belonging throughout the narrative?
- What role does the setting play in shaping the characters' decisions and relationships?
- Discuss how the ending reframes the events of the story. Were you surprised?
Unless otherwise stated, this discussion guide is reprinted with the permission of Harper Perennial.
Any page references refer to a USA edition of the book, usually the trade paperback version, and may vary in other editions.