Reading Group Guide

Discussion Questions

1. The book opens and closes with scenes of Margo in the river. What role does the Stark River play in the book, and how does it shape Margo?
2. Margo’s journey up and down the Stark River seems to be modeled after other famous journeys in literature, from the Odyssey to The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. How does Once upon a River fits into this tradition?
3. Margo describes her mother, lying in the sun, as "browning like one of Joanna's loaves of bread." There are several different types of women in the novel. How is Margo similar to, or different from, her mother and her aunt? How does Annie Oakley fit in?
4. Margo sleeps with three very different men in the book: Brian, Michael, and the Indian. What do each of these men offer her?
5. Margo is raped twice in the book, first by Cal and then by Paul. How do you understand her two very different reactions to the rapes?
6. Early in the book Margo’s father warns her to "think about the consequences" of her actions. What consequences does she face throughout the book? By the end, has Margo learned to face them?
7. Sharpshooting obviously means a great deal to Margo. Why do you think this is?
8. Margo goes by a variety of names in the book: Margaret Louise, Maggie, Sprite, Nympho. How does her identity change—or not change—with each name? What role does Smoke fill in Margo’s life? How does Smoke’s death affect her?
9. As Margo writes to her mother, she thinks "all the questions she was asking her ma added up to one question: how should Margo live?" Does Margo figure out how to live by the end of the book? What do you think her goals are?