1. Does McInerney's depiction of the strife-torn and amoral America of the 1980s accord with your view of it? In what ways is it different?

2. What comments does McInerney seem to be making about relationships in the modern world?

3. Why does the gag line "Paint my house," recur throughout the novel?

What thematic purpose does it serve?

4. What role do minor characters like photographer Glenda Banes and gossip writer Juan Baptiste serve in Brightness Falls?

5. As a work of literary realism, Brightness Falls may be read as a cultural document as well as a literary work. What significant details do we learn about the world McInerney writes about?

6. Many of the characters in the novel seem to be dysfunctional in some way or another. Does McInerney suggest that all people are scarred psychologically, or does he present some models of sanity?

7. In what ways can Jeff Pierce...