Like many of the novels and stories of Alcott, Work should encourage provocative discussions of the feminist and social issues that were her concerns. Important aspects of the novel involve links among women, moral values and social leadership. The novel also reflects Alcott's views on domesticity and gender relations. One good avenue to pursue is whether Alcott portrays an effective marriage in that of David and Christie.

Another is whether a "loving league of sisters," as Christie and her friends exemplified, is a possibility for women in today's feminist climate.

In general, Alcott drew upon her life experiences for her fiction. Discussion groups interested in history should find in Alcott's depictions of nineteenth-century life some useful keys to understanding.

The novel should prove particularly enlightening on social attitudes, various reform movements of the day and the means by which society's poor and needy received aid. Groups...