The Sisters Brothers

Content Warning: This section of the guide contains discussion of graphic violence, substance use, addiction, death, mental illness, sexual content, and emotional abuse.

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. What distinguishes DeWitt’s episodic picaresque structure from other journey narratives like Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn? How does the brothers’ series of misadventures shape your understanding of the American West compared to more traditional Westerns?

2. What role does dark humor play in making the brothers’ violence more palatable? Does DeWitt’s comedic approach effectively balance the novel’s brutal realities?

3. Which moments in the novel felt most authentic to you as representations of frontier life? Did the blend of realistic hardships with absurd encounters enhance or detract from your reading experience?

Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.

1. Eli and Charlie’s relationship shifts from Charlie’s dominance to a more equal partnership after Charlie loses his hand. Their mother describes their bond as having been “broken and mended many times” (324). How does this pattern of conflict and reconciliation reflect dynamics you’ve observed in your family relationships?

2. Have you ever found yourself in a job or situation where you questioned the morality of what you were doing? How does Eli’s growing discomfort with the Commodore’s orders resonate with your own experiences of ethical conflicts in work or life?

3. Warm’s transformation from a life of destitution, crime, and alcoholism to innovation and invention reflects his ability to channel destructive impulses into creativity. Think about a time when you or someone you know redirected negative energy into something positive. What made that change possible?

4. When you think about the novel’s ending, with the brothers returning to their childhood bedroom, does this regression feel like failure or healing to you?

Examine the book’s relevance to societal issues, historical events, or cultural themes.

1. The novel portrays the California Gold Rush as driven by greed that “short-circuits reason” and transforms “previously intelligent men and women” (102) into fortune-seekers. How does this critique of the Gold Rush mentality connect to modern get-rich-quick schemes or economic bubbles you’ve witnessed?

2. What does the novel suggest about the difference between frontier justice and formal law enforcement? In what ways do the brothers’ methods of conflict resolution reflect ongoing debates about vigilante justice versus institutional authority in contemporary society?

3. Throughout the novel, women exist primarily as sex workers, mysterious witches, or maternal figures, with little agency or voice in the narrative. How does this limited representation reflect the historical reality of women’s roles in the American West, and what does it suggest about gender dynamics in lawless societies?

4. The brothers struggle with the psychological aftermath of violence. What parallels do you see between the coping mechanisms they use to deal with trauma and contemporary conversations about mental health?

Dive into the book’s structure, characters, themes, and symbolism.

1. How does DeWitt’s episodic structure mirror the unpredictable and chaotic nature of frontier life? What does this picaresque approach reveal about the brothers’ inability to control their destiny?

2. Fire appears throughout the novel as both a tool for forgetting traumatic events and an uncontrollable force of destruction. How does this dual symbolism reflect the brothers’ relationship with their own violence?

3. Why does DeWitt choose Eli as the narrator instead of Charlie, the “lead man”? What perspective does Eli’s sensitivity and philosophical nature bring to the story that Charlie’s confidence and pragmatism might not?

4. What significance does the witch’s curse and her ability to see “dead men following behind” (30) the brothers hold beyond its supernatural elements? How does her prophecy that she will be “mostly gone” but “not completely” manifest throughout their journey?

5. Warm’s chemical formula serves as the novel’s central MacGuffin, but it also illuminates the tension between human ingenuity and greed. How does the formula’s power to reveal gold while simultaneously destroying life reflect the broader themes of the Gold Rush era?

6. The motif of dirt and cleanliness runs throughout the novel, with hygiene serving as a barometer of moral character. How does this symbolic framework support the brothers’ eventual transformation and return to their family home?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. Write a summary of the novel told from Charlie’s perspective during his transformation from a confident gunslinger to a dependent brother. Which events might he interpret differently than Eli, and how would his voice change as he loses his shooting hand?

2. Redesign Warm’s chemical formula to eliminate its deadly side effects while preserving its gold-detecting abilities. What safeguards would you build in?

3. The brothers encounter many potential turning points where they could have chosen different paths. Imagine Eli had accepted the bookkeeper’s invitation to stay in Mayfield, or if they had refused the Commodore’s final assignment. Write an alternative ending that explains how different choices have reshaped both brothers’ destinies.

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