A Story Lately Told, by Anjelica Houston

People

Huston Family: Walter Houston – grandfather John – father Enrica Georgia Soma (Rikki) – mother  (John’s fourth wife) Tony – brother   Danny – step brother (father John, mother Zoe) Allegra – step sister (mother Rikki, father John Julius)   Pablo – John’s adopted son from “last life in America”   Joan Buck – friend Lizzie - friend   “Nurse” – Kathleen Shine – children’s nanny starting when Anjelica was three   Bob Richardson – Huston’s live-in boyfriend for four years – mentally ill   Cici – John’s fifth wife

For discussion:

NOTE: Page numbers are from the paperback edition.


1. On page 42 and 43 of the paperback, the author wrote, “Dad collected people as well,” and that she had only met Pablo once or twice because he “belonged to Dad’s last life in America.”   What does this say about John Huston’s regard for the value of family, friendship and people in general?


2. Anjelica and Tony were never told what was happening or why.   How did this affect them as children?  How do you think it will affect them as adults?


3. Why did everyone allow John to raise Allegra after Rikki’s death?    Her natural father offered to raise her.  Houston wrote on page 207 “I was proud of Dad when he agreed to raise Allegra” and then on page 211 she wrote “I’m scared of Dad…He frightens me.”


4. Which characters did you like/dislike?  What were your feelings regarding the people in the book as you were reading?


5. Discuss the Huston as a writer.  What was your reading experience with this book?


6. Are you interested in reading the sequel?  Why or why not?


7. How has the idea of “celebrity” changed since the early days of movies when the studios “managed” actors’ lives and careers?   Is it for the better or worse?


8. Do you think the idea of “celebrity” has been tainted by people like Kim Kardashian who are “famous” for nothing? 

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