Which character did you identify with the most? Why?

Mercury Pictures Presents features a vast cast of characters—some stars, some supporting actors. Which character did you identify with the most? Why?

Surprisingly, I identified most with one of the supporting characters-Vincenzo's mother, Concetta. Her fierce love for her only surviving child resonated with me. My maternal side ached for her losses and I understood her need to protect Vincenzo and have faith that he would find his path in life. The most poignant quote to grasp the core of her being is: "..his mother likes to know her son is home before the light burns out."

I identified with Nino who lost everything and became lost, wandering for three years before facing Maria. A man who wanted to photograph the atrocities he'd seen, but was forced to give up his camera. A man driven to live another's life to stay alive, but rebelled against it. Nino was tortured, but an artist. He never gave up his vision as a photographer or his desire to record what was real.

I wish I could say Maria, but that would be a lie! I didn't really identify with any of the characters but I did find little bits of myself in many of them.

I identified with Maria. She sometimes hid her skills at maneuvering situations and people, but she was good at it! She could read people well and used it to her advantage. She was also intelligent. I admired her a lot.

Maria, she successfully operated and navigated in a man’s world.

Unfortunately I didn't identify with any single character. I think I just enjoyed the story line more. With that said I enjoyed Maria's first determination to make it in a "man's world" and wanted Nino to succeed. I was troubled that Eddie had to leave (I would have liked to know more about him).

I didn't actually identify with any characters but I really liked many of them. I particularly liked Maria, Nino and Arte...probably because they had the most page time. And I loved Guiseppe! (The gift that Nino brought to Maria from him of the cigar box full of the words and phrases that had been censored from his letters and her putting all the letters together made me puddle up). I think I would have loved to meet "the aunts" too!

I also did not identify with one character but admired Maria's ability to make people e believe in her abilities thus she could achieve her goals within the film industry.

At times I totally understood how Maria felt, but I wouldn't say that I totally "identified" with her. I liked many of the characters and enjoyed their interactions with each other, but lacking an identifying bond with a character is not a problem for me. I enjoy unique stories, and this book offered me that.

I identified the most with Maria because of her tenacity and loyalty to her family and the people she loved. In an industry that does not seem to value honesty, she is truthful to herself.

I think Guiseppe because of his love for his daughter and wife. He sacrificed so much and even though Maria betrayed him, he didn't want her to feel responsible for his imprisonment. He loved them so much and spent most of his life trying to get to them and wrote so many letters to Maria telling her how much he loved her. It just tore at my heart.

I related to Maria in several respects.

By the time I began law school, women lawyers were no longer a novelty. The composition of my class was nearly equal -- half men, half women. That did not mean that women had achieved equality in the workplace, of course. I was subjected to workplace sexual harassment several times over the years, and made my decision about what firm to join upon graduation, in part, based upon the behavior of male prospective employers during interviews. Several displayed bias and prejudice, making inappropriate remarks and inquring about how I planned to juggle my career and responsibilites as a mother of two young boys. I KNOW they didn't ask male candidates that. And it fueled my desire to become a civil rights attorney, a career I found immensely satisfying!

Maria was navigating a business world in which men held all the power and openly referred to her and other women as "girls." They laughed at her desire to become one of the executive staff and scoffed at her desire to be given credit as a film producer. The contributions of her male colleagues were openly valued more than hers on the pretext that men had families to support (Maria, unmarried, was self-supporting) and when job vacancies were created by male employees joining the military to fight World War II, there was no effort made to fill the vacancies. Instead, Maria and the other female employees were expected to perform multiple jobs with no salary increase. And Maria finally learns that for a long time she has been paid less than the employees who report to her.

Maria's workplace issues are contemporary workplace issues. Progress has been made, but there is still a long way to go before true equality will be achieved. But she was focused, determined, unyielding, and unwavering, and I relate to those qualities. She refused to stay in her "place" and settle for less than she deserved, and was willing to work as hard as she needed to in order to prove that her adversaries underestimated her at their own peril. She was believable and relatable because of her inner torment about the action she took that cost her father his freedom, demonstrating her moral compass and ethical foundations. Also traits that I relate to. And although she was a tough, formidable powerhouse in business, she was vulnerable and tender at heart, especially when she finally let herself love unconditionally. Again, I relate to her inner and public struggles.