The Patron Saint of Second Chances

The idea for The Patron Saint of Second Chances originated in part from news stories about tiny villages in Italy that are teetering on the brink of extinction. In a number of these towns, the mayors have come up with clever marketing ploys in an effort to drum up tourism or encourage new residents, such as selling homes for a dollar, or, in the small town of Falciano del Massico, passing a law making it illegal to die—who wouldn’t want to live there, right?! If you were the mayor of one of these villages, what would you do to save it?

Signor Speranza is a character who is preoccupied with the past. Throughout the novel, he is frequently prompted to remember a specific event by some external stimulus—the scent of a flower, the taste of a certain food, a dream, a song. Which of Signor Speranza’s memories did you enjoy the most? Have you had similar experiences, where one of your senses unexpectedly triggered a forgotten memory?

Signor Speranza regards the butcher, Signor Maestro, as his nemesis. Why do you think that is? The closest these two characters come to bonding is in chapter 12, when Signor Maestro is running the craft services table at Signor Speranza’s shop. What is it that these two characters actually have in common? Knowing how the book ends, how do you see future holiday gatherings turning out?

Main characters in dramatic stories often don’t get what they want, only what they need. Comedies, on the other hand, can see the main character get both. We know what Signor Speranza wants—to save his village—but what is it that you think he needs? How does this story help him get it?

The village priest, Don Rocco, functions as a kind of moral compass for Signor Speranza, who, at one point, regards him as an “avenging angel.” Why do you think Don Rocco changes his mind about Signor Speranza’s obvious scheming? To take it one further, what do you think God thinks of Signor Speranza’s plans?

Signor Speranza is a believer in “folk Catholicism,” most notably in his dependence upon his Complete Compendium of Catholic Saints and Blessed or Beatified Persons, which, as Don Rocco points out, he uses much like a phone book. At the end, however, he has to let go of the semblance of control that praying to the saints gives him and take a real leap of faith. If you are a religious person, have you ever experienced anything like this?

Although Signor Speranza’s father died thirty years ago and he has no sons, he continues to call his business Speranza and Sons. Why do you think he does that? How does the change in attitude Signor Speranza experiences over the course of the story enable him to change the name of the business at the end?

At the beginning of the story, Signor Speranza is convinced that the problem with their village is “the young people.” Is he right? How does his viewpoint change by the end of the story?

Ultimately, it’s not Dante Rinaldi who saves Prometto, but the villagers’ own enthusiasm. Why is it so important at the end that Signor Speranza save the version of the movie they made?

The Patron Saint of Second Chances is a farce—a comedy in which characters and events are exaggerated, and the situation continually—and often ridiculously—gets worse and worse until a series of interwoven plot points converge for a triumphant ending. It can be tricky to make the ending of a comedy a surprise, because there is an unspoken contract between the writer and the reader that everything will turn out all right in the end. Even if you saw the ending coming a mile away, was there anything that surprised you about the way things came about? Is there anything you would have changed?

And, finally, is Signor Maestro right? Will it be a boy??