Introduction

New York Times bestselling author Xochitl Gonzalez delivers a mesmerizing novel about a first-generation Ivy League student who uncovers the genius work of a female artist decades after her suspicious death

"Incandescent." —Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Who gets to leave a legacy?

1985. Anita de Monte, a rising star in the art world, is found dead in New York City; her tragic death is the talk of the town. Until it isn’t. By 1998 Anita’s name has been all but forgotten—certainly by the time Raquel, a third-year art history student is preparing her final thesis. On College Hill, surrounded by privileged students whose futures are already paved out for them, Raquel feels like an outsider. Students of color, like her, are the minority there, and the pressure to work twice as hard for the same opportunities is no secret.

But when Raquel becomes romantically involved with a well-connected older art student, she finds herself unexpectedly rising up the social ranks. As she attempts to straddle both worlds, she stumbles upon Anita’s story, raising questions about the dynamics of her own relationship, which eerily mirrors that of the forgotten artist.

Moving back and forth through time and told from the perspectives of both women, Anita de Monte Laughs Last is a propulsive, witty examination of power, love, and art, daring to ask who gets to be remembered and who is left behind in the rarefied world of the elite.

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Discussion Questions

From the publisher:

1. There are themes of power, place, and feminism told through the lens of two LatinX protagonists from different timelines. Where in the novel do you see this take place? How do you see these themes change between the two timelines in 1985 and 1998?

2. Are Anita and Raquel foils of one another? What similarities do you see between the two female protagonists? Why do you think the author decided to use two perspectives to tell this story?

3. Consider the magical realism elements employed in certain moments of the plot. What other literary devices are used by the author and how do they enhance the way the story is told?

4. Discuss art – in all its forms – and how it contributes to storytelling across generations. Do different forms of art tell stories in different ways? Does the art form change the end result for the viewer, reader, observer?

5. Anita de Monte Laughs Last is based on the true story of Ana Mendieta, a Cuban American sculptor whose controversial death at the age of 37 rocked the art world after she fell from the 34th-floor apartment window. Though her husband Carl Andre was acquitted of second-degree murder in February 1988 after neighbors claimed they heard arguing between the couple prior to Ana’s death, what similarities do you see with these two stories? What differences? Where do you see traces of the author’s inspiration for this story?

6. This audiobook is read by a full cast of narrators. How do the multiple voices come together to tell the story? There are multiple narrators recording the different timelines in Anita de Monte Laughs Last. Did you like multiple narrators for different perspectives? Why or why not?

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