1. Is it possible to determine the time period during which the story takes place? What clues does McKinley offer?

2. How do Grace and Hope fulfill their allegorical names?

3. How is the father transformed after his trip through the forest?

4. Does Beauty actually grow, or does she only seem to grow during her stay at the castle?

5. How does Beauty's interest in ancient Greek mythology and literature relate to her adventures in the novel?

6. Why does it seem appropriate that the Beast cannot recall his name when he is transformed back into a man?

7. Why does Beauty immediately like the portrait of the young man that she sees? Does she recognize, consciously or unconsciously, the resemblance of the portrait to the Beast?

8. Why is the title of the novel simply Beauty? Why is it not Beauty and the Beast?

9. Where, how, and by whom is...