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1. How does this book rework or transform or relate to Cervantes' book?

2. The shape of the whole book.

What do you make of its three part form? Why are the three main sections called what they are, what happens in each of them, and so on... (In particular, what do you make of the introduction to Part 2, "Other Texts", which says "...All She Could Do Was Read Male Texts Which Weren't Hers"? What's the status of the four texts included in this section?)

3. Love, Cruelty, Poverty and Privilege, Power and Death

Does this equal romantic love? Are there any differences between Acker's analyses of the interactions of these factors and those that are implicit in the stories about romance and courtly love in Cervantes? (If so, what are they?) (How about the dynamics implicit in Chretien's accounts?)

4. Language and Power

What sorts of power do Acker's words have? How would you describe the emotional dynamics of your experience as a reader involved in a relationship with her as a writer? How does that relationship compare with the relationships she presents in the book?

5. Dream

"...which was a dream," the subtitle says. In what ways is the story "a dream"? How does that affect how you read it or think about it?

6. Wastelands

How do these worlds compare with those of Eliot's Wasteland or the world of Hugh Selwyn Mauberly?

7. Does Acker's heroine learn anything in the course of the book; does she change or develop? If so, how? Does she make mistakes or display her ignorance in the early stages of her quest? If so, where and how?

8. Comparing this book with Hopscotch...

Although they are quite different stylistically, I think these two books focus on quite similar emotional states and a number of similar themes. You might find it interesting and helpful to try to explain Acker to somebody who is reading Cortazar, and to listen to somebody who is reading Cortazar trying to explain Hopscotch to you.