The Baby Lottery

1. What was your immediate emotional reaction when you learned that Charlotte decides to have an abortion? Did your feelings change when you learned more about her partner, struggles, and situation? Why or why not?

2. Though only Finley has a chapter to himself, there are several prominent male characters in The Baby Lottery. Which of these characters do you see as being strong and what makes them that way? Is what makes a male character strong different than what makes a female character strong?

3. What effect did the shift to a first-person narrator have on page 188? How do you think your understanding of Charlotte would have been different if the author had not switched to the first person?

4. At the core of this story there are the five old college friends. By the end of the book, how have their relationships with one another changed? Was the change avoidable?

5. Was Jean's anger with Charlotte justified? Why or why not?

The women in this book are college-educated and pretty motivated. Many of them attempt to balance being a wife, girlfriend, lover, and/or mother with their careers. What are some of the challenges that these characters face as they attempt to occupy multiple roles? Are they successful?