1. There were a plethora of Wild West shows in the American West in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth centuries (the most notable example is Buffalo Bill Cody). How did these shows celebrate frontier life? How did they exploit it?
2. Some readers have said Ruby is as prickly as cacti, but also likeable. What are you able to overlook to like her?
3. What role did Big Burl have in his daughter Ruby’s life? What about Divina and Vi?
4. Most characters possess both positive and negative traits. What negative traits does Ruby Fortune possess? What positive traits does Willie Fortune possess? Explain.
5. How did Willie’s death affect all his sons differently? Clayton? Fletcher? Virgil? Sam? How do you cope with tragedy? Do you run from it or face it head on? Or is there another way you deal with raw emotions and the long-term effects of it?
6. Two of Ruby’s sons—Virgil and Sam—have some form of disability. How does Ruby treat them? Advocate for them? Talk about how it would have been more difficult to raise a child with a disability more than 100 years ago.
7. What is Wink’s role in the novel? How do the Shakespearean quotes he offers fit in?
8. Margaret Stern acts as a thorn in Ruby’s side and later as a confidante. How do both women—and their relationship—change in the arc of the story?
9. One in three women experiences domestic violence in her lifetime, often at the hands of a family member, friend, or spouse. How has the topic of domestic violence come out from the shadows over the past 100 years? What do you see as the solution to this issue?
10. In murder investigations today, there is an in-depth inquiry, media attention, a jury trial, and possible prison sentence. How does Ruby escape all this? Do you think this is right or wrong? And how do Sheldon Sloane’s feelings for Ruby affect his judgment?
11. In what other ways is “frontier justice” exercised in the novel?
12. If you met Ruby today, what advice do you think she would give you?