In the story I have José and Anita making only one trip to Italy together, when in reality, José made multiple trips between Uruguay and Italy as he closed out business and got his soldiers settled. Likewise, in Anita’s final years she traveled back and forth from José’s side to her children in Nizza before the fateful retreat from Rome.
Garibaldi was a staunch abolitionist and insistent on freedom for all, a sentiment shared by Anita as well. It was important to me that the struggles of the freed slaves and the bravery of the black lancers be brought up even though I was unable to explore their stories more thoroughly.
I would also like to note that though there may not be anything left of the earth goddess Atiola, she was a deity whom Anita brought up more than once to Feliciana, even acknowledging that this goddess was on the verge of being forgotten. In all of my research I couldn’t find anything beyond Anita’s references to her. It would seem that her story is lost to time.
One thing I did not need to exaggerate was José’s love for Anita. His pet name for her, tesoro mio, came from his writings where he often referred to his wife as his treasure. He also wrote the following in his autobiography: “Fate reserved for me that other Brazilian flower which I still weep for, and for which I shall weep while I live.”
In crafting this story, the one thing that I didn’t expect was to find a feminist icon whom I could look up to, whose strength inspired and encouraged me in ways I never would have imagined. I am proud to be a steward of Anita’s tale.
Acknowledgments
Writing can be a very solitary activity. However, to get a story from a rough sketch in a notebook to an actual book takes a community. If it weren’t for these people, The Woman in Red wouldn’t be published.
First and foremost, a huge thank you to my agent, Johanna Castillo. Thank you for seeing the diamond in the rough, for giving me opportunities, and for always being there for my questions and anxieties.
Karen Kosztolnyik, thank you for being such a great editor and for loving my book as much as I do. It has been a true pleasure working with you. You made a lifelong dream come true, and I am eternally grateful. Likewise, thank you Grand Central for all your hard work in making this book happen. The Woman in Red found the perfect home with you.
Ryan Tierney, my husband, the peanut butter to my jelly, thank you for not only seeing my vision but for also putting up with the overflowing laundry and dirty dishes just so I could write one more chapter. You were always my first sounding board and listened patiently when I needed to vent.
Thank you to my father, William Giovinazzo, for nagging me to pick up a book about Anita. As always, you were right, I did love her story. For my mother, Helen Hall, thank you for encouraging me to have more books than shoes.
Holly Kammier, thank you for being an early editor and for helping me to take The Woman in Red to the next level.
Erin Lindsay McCabe and Greer Macallister, you were always available for my questions and never failed to cheer me on and console me when I was down. Likewise, to the rest of my historical fiction high-vibe tribe: Mary Volmer, Heather Webb, Alyssa Palombo, and Stephanie Storey, thank you for your support, advice, and mentorship.
It is a special thing to be able to count an Amanda as a friend; perhaps I am especially lucky to have two Amandas in my life. Amanda Vetter, thank you for being there for advice and insight even when you had no idea what was going on. We’ve come a long way since the Gag Factory. Amanda Sawyer, thank you for being a fantastic critique partner. I am truly grateful for the friendship that we built over long-distance coffee dates and writing.
Antonia Burns and Eddie Louise Clark, thank you for being early readers and cheerleaders.
Thank you to the Women’s National Book Association—Los Angeles, for supporting and sharing your resources.
There was a time, believe it or not, when I set down my pen and gave up on writing. If it weren’t for you, Michele Leivas, I probably wouldn’t have picked it back up. You believed in me when I didn’t believe in myself. If it weren’t for your persistence, neither I nor my book would be here today. You are the best co-host/co-conspirator/sorority sister a girl could ask for.
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About the Author
DIANA GIOVINAZZO is the co-creator of Wine, Women and Words, a weekly literary podcast featuring interviews with authors over a glass of wine. Diana is active within her local literary community as the president of the Los Angeles chapter of the Women’s National Book Association. The Woman in Red is her debut novel. For more information, please visit her website: https://dianagiovinazzo.com/.
Reading Group Guide
Discussion Questions
In your opinion, what draws Anita to Giuseppe and vice versa? Is it love at first sight? Do you believe there needs to be a reason for people to fall in love, or do you believe some people can have an immediately strong connection?
From a young age, Anita made clear that she had ambitions beyond the role of wife and mother. After training horses with her father, she became a nurse and, eventually, a soldier. How did her upbringing prepare her to take on the role of a revolutionary?
Before Anita meets Giuseppe, she is characterized as a troublemaker, as crazy, as a manipulator. After she meets him, she is characterized as a brave revolutionary, as a radical thinker, as a brilliant strategist. Her intelligence and take-charge attitude are only praised after she is partnered with a great man. How does this shift in attitude exemplify women’s continued struggle to be taken seriously in the absence of a male counterpart?
In chapter 16, Anita, pregnant with her first child, says, “Suddenly my life wasn’t my own; a future person was sucking away everything that I was.” Many women today struggle with the notion of losing themselves after a child is born. How did motherhood alter Anita’s sense of identity?
In chapter 24, Giuseppe begs Rossetti to abandon his printing press as they travel to São Gabriel: “Telling our story doesn’t have to be your job…Brother, let someone else carry that burden. Just for a little while.” Discuss the symbolism of the printing press in this scene: its weight, its importance, and its capacity to establish a personal and political legacy. Do you believe Rossetti was right to prioritize the preservation of history and personal glory over his own life?
In chapter 25, Anzani describes Montevideo as the “Florence of the Americas,” where expats from different cities in Italy came together and called themselves Italians. How else did Montevideo foreshadow a future, united Italy?
In chapter 27, Anita says, “In the parlor the men talked, but it was in the kitchen that the important decisions were made.” Do you agree or disagree with this statement? How is this idea illustrated in South America? In Italy?
What do you think of Giuseppe’s decision to leave Anita a note explaining his departure to Corrientes in chapter 32? Why do you think he didn’t tell her he was leaving in person?
Why do you think Anita dreams of her father before Rosita dies? Before her own death? Is his presence an omen of death, or a subconscious attempt at comfort?
Discuss the importance of the color red in the novel, from its association with professional butchers to Anita’s adoption of the color for her personal wardrobe.
What do you think of Anita’s decision to shear off her hair and join Giuseppe on his campaign to Rome, leaving her children in the care of their grandmother? What decision would you have made?
Birds play a heavily symbolic role in the novel. In the prologue, Anita worries black vultures are a sign of her husband’s passing; in chapter 2, a bird on a branch foreshadows Anita’s father’s death; in chapter 53, a little black bird personifies Destiny. In Brazil, the Bororo people believe the human soul manifests in the shape of a bird upon a person’s passing. In Uruguay, the tero bird is a “common literary symbol for the audacious, bold, attentive, and vivacious n
ature of the gaucho.” Discuss the disparity between these two interpretations and how they relate to Anita at various points in the novel. When the little black bird appeared in the final chapter of the novel, did you realize Anita was about to die?
Anita was born on August 30, 1821. She died at the age of twenty-seven on August 4, 1849. Though she lived more than 170 years ago, her story resonates with contemporary readers, as women continue to campaign for equality today all around the world. How does Anita’s life represent women’s ongoing struggle to be recognized for their work and overall contributions to society?
Copyright © 2020 by Hachette Book Group and Diana Giovinazzo
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