As a genre, magical realism is a union of the seeming contradictions of reality and magic. How does Lloyd use magical realism to explore other contradictory ideas or dichotomies in the novel? How does Lloyd use magical realism to create a deeper understanding or perspective of conventional reality?

How does Lloyd use secondary characters like Hatch to develop the novel’s theme on the importance of support from friends and family? How is social support important to more than one character in the novel? Use specific examples from the text to support your response.

Novels-in-verse, narratives written as several individual poems or one long poem, are popular mediums through which to explore heavy emotions. What does Lloyd’s decision to cast some of Olive’s reflections as free verse poems add to the text? You may wish to consider when and where the free verse sections occur in the novel and what emotions they represent for Olive as you construct your response.