Book Club Discussion Questions
For supplemental discussion material see our Beyond the Book article, and our BookBrowse Review of Vita.
Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!
About This Book
A family epic, a love story, and a fascinating new image of America at the dawn
of the twentieth century,
Vita conveys a lost world that sparks the
imagination as well as the heart. Just as the novel's characters unlock one
another's secrets, readers will find much to discover and discuss in each
captivating chapter. This guide is designed to enhance the experience of reading
groups and individuals in exploring
Vita. We hope that the following
questions will enrich your reading of Melania G. Mazzucco's extraordinary novel.
Introduction
A major bestseller in Italy and the winner of that country's most prestigious
literary award,
Vita brings to life three generations striving to
reconcile ambitious dreams and haunting memories. A marvelous transatlantic
journey, this is the great story of Italian immigration to America.
At the center of the novel are Vita and Diamante, childhood friends whose
loyalty was sealed during their treacherous voyage from Italy to Ellis Island at
the turn of the century. Vita's father runs a decrepit boarding house in lower
Manhattan, where shady tenants invent ruthless means of survival in a harsh
world of criminality. Yet Vita and Diamante believe in the promise of America, a
promise that will lead Diamante west, laboring in an industry rigged to imprison
him. Remaining in the city, Vita will learn how to thrive on danger, immersed in
clandestine worlds that are all too eager to claim this spirited and beautiful
young woman for themselves. When Vita and Diamante are at last reunited, they
spin an altered, world-wise dream, which will remain etched in their identities
for the rest of their lives. Future generations-including a World War II soldier
touring his mother's ravaged hometown, and an award-winning writer who is wary
of the States - will try to retrace the fate of these two extraordinary
immigrants. Each clue they unearth raises a tantalizing question, while
Vita's
tales gently simmer between truth and legend.
Questions for Discussion
- What is the effect of the novel's opening scene, in war-ravaged Tufo? What
significance did it have for you once you reached the last chapter? How does the
author's approach to the three timelines enhance her storytelling?
- How would you characterize Vita's relationship with her brother, Nicola
(Coca-Cola)? Are family ties meaningful in Agnello's house?
- When the narrator apprehensively makes her first trip to the United States
at age thirty, what does she discover? Does Little Italy retain any traces of
Vita and Diamante's experience when they arrived there nearly one hundred years
before? What compels the narrator (and all genealogists) to dig for details
about ancestry?
- How does the author develop themes of identity and belonging throughout the narrative?
- What role does the setting play in shaping the characters' decisions and relationships?
- Discuss how the ending reframes the events of the story. Were you surprised?
Unless otherwise stated, this discussion guide is reprinted with the permission of Picador.
Any page references refer to a USA edition of the book, usually the trade paperback version, and may vary in other editions.
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