Judith Rossner attained a national reputation with Looking for Mr. Goodbar (1975), a best-seller which presents a dramatic portrayal of the sexual dilemma of modern Americans. The movie based on the book further advanced Rossner's reputation and increased the sales of her other novels, some of which have been republished with the billing "by the acclaimed author of Looking for Mr. Goodbar." Looking for Mr. Goodbar is not only the most popular of Rossner's novels but also the best, treating her dominant theme--the conflict between selfishness and altruism--most convincingly. Her other novels, while they show promise, are often weakened by morally ambiguous or inconsistent characters and by formulaic plots that do not satisfactorily fulfill reader expectation.

Judith Perelman Rossner was born and grew up in New York City, the setting of most of her novels. She attended New York City public schools, including the City College of New York...