Great Circle Essay Prompts: Analytical Writing Topics for Maggie Shipstead's Novel

These twelve prompts are designed to move beyond summary and toward argument. Each asks you to weigh evidence from both Marian Graves's and Hadley Baxter's narratives, to test a claim against the novel's structure, and to build a thesis that could not be transplanted onto another book. Use the chapter references as starting points, not endpoints, and let the novel's own ambiguities complicate your reading rather than resolve it. For broader context, consult the themes overview or the character pages before drafting.