Gwen Mati engages in a quest for identity and personal growth which aligns her with the female protagonists of a number of Robbins's works: Sissy Hankshaw in Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1976), Princess Leigh-Cheri Fursenberg-Barcalona in Still Life with Woodpecker (1980), and Ellen Cherry Charles in Skinny Legs and All (1990).

Each of these young women learns that her energies have been misplaced, and each comes to realize that love is more important than social activism, art, or money. Robbins once again introduces psychedelic drugs — this time in the shape of African frogs — as a tool for individuals to reach a higher level of consciousness, a theme that connects this work with both Another Roadside Attraction (1971) and Even Cowgirls Get the Blues in which psychedelic mushrooms perform the same consciousnessexpanding task. Robbins's use of Larry Diamond as Gwen's mentor parallels his use of the Chink in...