Questions and Topics for Discussion
My Name is LucY Barton
- Lucy’s husband asked her mother to visit her in the hospital, and paid for her trip. Do you think that was a gesture of love on his part?
- What role does the gossip Lucy and her mother share play in the book?
- Do you think Lucy blames her mother for the more painful parts of her childhood? Could her mother have done better?
- WWII and the Nazis are themes that profoundly affect Lucy’s father (and hence her whole family), Lucy’s marriage to her first husband, and even her dreams. Discuss.
- Lucy expresses great love for her doctor. How would you describe that love?
- Lucy’s friend Jeremy told her she needed to be “ruthless as a writer.” Did she take his advice? How?
- Why did Lucy keep returning again and again to see the marble statue at the Metropolitan Museum of Art?
- How has the poverty of Lucy’s childhood shaped her life and her work?
- What does living in New York City mean for Lucy? Do you think she feels at home in New York?
- What did Sarah Payne mean, when she said to Lucy: “We only have one story”?
Questions for Discussion for My Name Is Lucy Barton.