The White Mary Reading Guide & Discussion Questions

Book Club Discussion Questions

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For supplemental discussion material see our Beyond the Book article, A Short History of Papua New Guinea and our BookBrowse Review of The White Mary.

Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!

1. What is at the heart of Marika’s quest to find Robert Lewis? What does he represent to her? How does her image of him change throughout the novel?
   


2. How did your impressions of Seb shift throughout the novel? What sustains his relationship with Marika? What are its greatest challenges?
   


3. How does the spiritual world of the Papua New Guineans reflect their view of themselves and their place in the world? What universal fears and rites are captured in their beliefs? Do they reflect or refute the book’s epigraph from the Gnostic gospels? Do Marika’s spiritual beliefs change as a result of her journey?
   

Unless otherwise stated, this discussion guide is reprinted with the permission of Picador. Any page references refer to a USA edition of the book, usually the trade paperback version, and may vary in other editions.