Big Stone Gap by Adriana Trigiani

Make complete sentences as you answer questions with asterisk (*).

 

  1. In many respects, all of the Big Stone Gap books are about ÒsecretsÓ and the difference between appearance and reality.  What is the secret that Ave MarieÕs mother Fiametta shares with her in a letter after her death?  _______________    Why doesnÕt Fiametta tell her daughter while she is alive?  ____________________________________________________

 

  1. How does Jack MacChesney become a hero at the mines? __________

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  1. Jack bungles his marriage proposal to Ave Marie, but he wins her when he makes an extraordinary sacrifice so that she can journey to Italy.  What is JackÕs sacrifice? ________________________

 

  1. *Explain why Ave Marie feels like an outsider, a ÒferrinerÓ as Iva Lou would say.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  1. Who is Mario Schilpario?  _______________________________

      How is he different from Fred Mulligan? ____________________

 

  1. *What is the meaning of Ave MarieÕs ÒDeep SleepÓ in the book?  Explain. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  1. What comic episode changes TheodoreÕs fate and allows Trigiani to make a statement about Òchance versus choiceÓ? ________________

 

  1. *How does Trigiani ÒdeconstructÓ in her writing the typical stereotypes that popular culture often associates with Italians and Appalachians, two groups that are often considered ÒoutsidersÓ?  Explain.