Lady Cop Makes Trouble (Stewart) - Discussion Questions

Discussion Questions
1. "Improbable as it may sound, I had, at last, found work that suited me," Constance says of her job as deputy sheriff (page 4). Do you think Mrs. Headison, the first other woman law enforcement officer Constance meets, would express the same sentiment? Why or why not?

2. In addition to her deputy sheriff duties, Constance serves Paterson as the jail matron. How do the expectations and requirements of this aspect of her job compare to those of her work as a deputy? How does each position speak to Constance’s strengths and weaknesses?

3. In this sequel, we get to see how Constance embraces her new role as deputy sheriff. How have the other Kopp sisters—Fleurette and Norma—come into their own, or changed, due to their battle with Henry Kaufman and his Black Handers from Girl Waits with Gun?

4. As she stakes out the home of an escaped convict’s brother, hoping to spot her quarry, Constance observes, "The shops looked like set pieces in a theater, waiting silently behind the curtain for the lights to come up and the actors to step out in their costumes and take the parts of shopkeepers and pushcart drivers" (page 97). What part is Constance playing at this point in the novel? How does the way she sees herself differ from the ways other characters see her, such as Sheriff Heath, Mrs. Heath, Norma and Fleurette?

5. In Girl Waits with Gun, we explored the lives of women in this time period through the lens of the Kopp sisters’ experiences. In Lady Cop Makes Trouble, we again delve into the lives of women, but this time the experience is much broader, taking us out into the world as Constance herself broadens her horizons. In an era where women have limited options, discuss how characters like Providencia Monafo, Mrs. Heath, Aunt Adele, and Constance deal with fears and disappointments: How do they each choose to cope?

6. Constance reminisces on page 192 about how hard her mother tried to keep her from escaping her world of domestic duties and isolated farm life. Constance similarly wants to keep Fleurette from escaping to the city, the theater, and all she fears that entails. Discuss the ways in which worldviews change between generations—especially those experiencing the kind of social change we see happening in this novel—and how this influences your opinion of Constance and Fleurette’s relationship. Do you think Constance’s concerns are well founded? How do you imagine young women like Fleurette and her friend Helen see these concerns?

7. "Deputies follow the orders given to them by the sheriff," says Sheriff Heath (page 240). Those who don’t, he asserts, are called outlaws. It’s true that Constance hasn’t received her badge and is not legally a deputy in this novel. But do you think Constance is an outlaw according to this definition? What power do titles and labels really have—can one still embody a role without "officially" owning its label? What other labels and titles are examined and challenged in this novel?

8. Sheriff Heath goes to great pains to keep Constance’s name out of the papers and keep her from public shame over losing von Matthesius. Do you think it’s reckless of her to pursue the man despite the sheriff’s direct orders to the contrary? "You only take orders from yourself," Heath admonishes (page 235). What would you have done in her place? What other "rules" does Constance break (or bend) in her life?

9. When they catch Reinhold, the messenger boy, he exclaims morosely, "Rudy told me to watch for police, but he didn’t say nothing about a lady" (p234). Many characters focus on women not being able to do what a man can do, but what about the reverse? Identify the advantages, both illustrated in this novel and in general, of having a female law enforcement officer.

10. Much changes once Constance captures von Matthesius. Describe the changes between her and her family. What else shifts for Constance and those around her? How might things have ended if Constance had not caught von Matthesius? How would his escape influence how you viewed Constance’s actions throughout the novel?

11. "The first line came with such tenderness that it seemed as if it was meant for each one of us," Constance thinks of the Christmas carol lyrics shared in the novel’s ending (page 302). Discuss how they apply to Constance and her fellow lawmen. Why do you think the author chose to end the novel with this poignant moment?
(Questions issued by publisher.)

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