Puig's novels usually make for lively discussions because he forthrightly presents controversial subjects and because it is often hard to know what he the author intends. In Pubis Angelical, he has distanced himself so far from his subjects that it is hard to tell whether he sympathizes with or despises his female protagonists for their troubles with men. A chaotic but stimulating discussion can arise out of trying to discern authorial intent; a similarly chaotic but stimulating discussion can arise out of sorting out what is illusion and what is reality within the context of the novel. When do seemingly real problems turn out to be products of the imagination? When do seeming illusions turn out to be real problems?

What is more important, physical fact or psychological perceptions? Discussion group members might do best if they agree that by discussion's end they will still disagree...