Literary fiction · Book club
The Story of a New Name book club questions
Here are 12 book club questions for The Story of a New Name by Elena Ferrante, ordered to open easily and end somewhere worth arguing about. Copy them, print them, or bring them up one at a time.
The Story of a New Name is the second volume of Elena Ferrante's Neapolitan Novels, continuing the story of Elena Greco and Lila Cerullo from roughly 1960 through the late 1960s.
Elena Ferrante · 2012 · 8h 40m
Full summary and key takeaways →The 12 questions
- 1.
Lila enters marriage believing she can manage it on her own terms. What specific expectations did she have, and how quickly did Ferrante establish that they would not be met?
- 2.
Elena's relationship with Nino Sarratore is central to this volume. Is Elena in love with him, or is he primarily a symbol of the world she wants to enter?
- 3.
Ferrante is often praised for writing female friendship honestly. In this volume, does the Elena-Lila relationship feel like friendship, or is it more complicated than that word allows?
- 4.
The Solara brothers are a persistent presence. What do they represent — class, violence, unconstrained male power? Does the novel ever individuate them or do they remain types?
- 5.
Lila's summer at Ischia with Elena is one of the most discussed passages in the series. What changes between the women during that summer, and why does it matter?
- 6.
Elena constantly measures herself against Lila, even when Lila is absent. Is that a form of dependence or a form of ambition? Does the novel distinguish between the two?
- 7.
The title refers to Lila's new surname after marriage. By the end of the volume, how has that name changed what Lila is — and what she was?
- 8.
Ferrante has insisted on anonymity. Does knowing nothing about who wrote these novels change your relationship to them, or is the biographical opacity irrelevant to the reading?
- 9.
The novel is set in the 1960s but was published in 2012. Do the social conditions it describes feel historical or current?
- 10.
The Neapolitan novels are sometimes described as feminist novels. Is that accurate — and if so, in what specific sense? Is the feminism in the argument, the characters, or the form?
- 11.
By the end of this volume, whose story do you think this is — Elena's or Lila's?
- 12.
This is the second of four novels. At what point, if any, do you think readers should decide whether to continue? What does this volume signal about where the series is going?
How to run the discussion
- Pick six to eight, not all of them. An hour of real discussion covers fewer questions than anyone expects, and racing the list is what makes a book club feel like homework.
- Open with what people noticed, not what they concluded. Asking for a verdict first hardens opinions before anyone has heard each other.
- Let the disagreement run. The questions below that split a room are the ones worth the time; the ones everyone answers the same way can be skipped.
- Ask the quiet person a specific question. A direct, narrow question is far easier to answer than an open invitation to contribute.
Themes worth steering toward
If the conversation stalls, these are the threads that usually restart it.
Common questions
What are good book club questions for The Story of a New Name?
Here are 12 book club questions for The Story of a New Name by Elena Ferrante, ordered to open easily and end somewhere worth arguing about. The strongest openers ask what each reader noticed rather than what they concluded, and the discussion usually turns on female ambition, class and escape, friendship and rivalry.
How long should a book club discussion of The Story of a New Name last?
Most groups run 60 to 90 minutes of actual discussion. That is roughly six to eight questions, not all of them, so pick the ones that suit your group rather than working down the list in order.
What are the main themes in The Story of a New Name?
Female ambition, Class and escape, Friendship and rivalry, Marriage and entrapment, Identity and reinvention. Those are the threads most likely to divide a room, which makes them the useful places to steer a discussion that has gone quiet.
Picking the next one? See books like The Story of a New Name or questions for other book club picks.
