Short stories pose a special challenge for a reading group, but the meatiness of Atwood's pieces and their reiteration of several of the author's key themes should provide interest in how the stories work individually and in relation to one another. It is worth considering how the short story differs from the novel and what unique opportunities it accords a writer like Atwood who also works quite well in the more spacious fictional form.

Similarly, the group might ask if there are places in Atwood's prose where her talents as a poet are prominent.

The presence of two stories about the exhumations of ancient corpses suggests Atwood's interest in history and its uses by contemporary culture. Readers may be intrigued by the light shed on the present by such macabre encounters with the past.

1. What are the strengths of the short story as a literary form...