Although Bedrock is identified as a feminist novel, many different readers would find its particular brand of humor and its lively kaleidoscope of characters and settings entertaining.

The subject of women's wit, and how it may be different from men's, is always good, and pop culture buffs enjoy the allusions to 1980s trends. The openended finish to the novel with Clea and Elke in Roches Ridge, Terence and Turner in New York, and the possibilities for their future left unresolved, offers opportunity for much speculation.

1. What is Alther's tone when she creates comic scenes or characters? Is it generous or mean? fair or unfair? Is anyone ridiculed unjustly? Who, or what, is most frequently singled out as the butt of jokes?

2. Clea and Elke are so very different characters, what do you think attracts them to one another? Is there relationship always a positive one? What...