The Almond Picker A Novel [Paperback]

The child of poor farmers, La Mennulara became a maid for a well-to-do local family when she was only a girl; by dint of hard work and intelligence, she became the indispensable administrator of the family's affairs. Still, she was a mere servant, and now (as this story begins) she is dead.

As the details unfold about this mysterious woman,The Almond Pickerassumes the witty suspense of a thriller, the emotional power of a love story, and the evocative atmosphere of a historical novel. Set in Sicily in the 1960s, a violent, complicated society in the midst of tumultuous change,The Almond Pickeris the story of a woman who negotiated for her freedom as no one else dared.

1. What are your initial impressions of Mennulara, based on the observations provided in the first chapter? How would you characterize the various reactions to her death?

2. Discuss the novel's narrative voice. How does this tone serve to balance the tragic and comic elements of life in Roccacolomba? In what way does Simonetta Agnello Hornby make us members of a conversation club?

3. Consider the temperaments of the Alfallipe children: Lilla, Gianni, and Carmela. How will each of them remember Mennulara? How does Mennulara seem to have felt about them?

4. The early 1960s proved to be a time of political transition in Italy. As the country emerged from World War II and dealt with the remnants of prewar Fascism, other political partiesincluding Communists, Socialists, and Christian Democratsvied for power. How does this political landscape become apparent inThe Almond Picker? Why do some of the local Communists perceive Mennulara as a traitor to the working class rather than a heroine? What other cultural details accoml³"