April 26 Meeting - "Trust" by Hernán Diaz

Last August, our colleague Marta published a fascinating post on this blog sharing her thoughts on the book we're reading this month. If you'd like to delve into all the nuances of this story, click here to read the Marta's contribution post about "Trust" - My Own View .

Sections of this post (click to go)

1. The Author
2. The Book
3. Videos
4. Discussion Questions
5. Financial Vocabulary
6. Mini Financial Timeline: 1929
7. List of Characters  - Who's Who in "Trust"

1. The Author

Hernán Díaz was born in Buenos Aires in 1973 and grew up between Argentina and Sweden before settling in the United States. He is a novelist and scholar whose work often explores wealth, power, identity, and narrative form. Díaz earned a PhD from New York University and has taught at several institutions.

His debut novel, In the Distance (2017), was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and established him as a bold and innovative literary voice. However, his second novel, Trust, marked a turning point in his career. Published in 2022, the book received widespread critical acclaim and won the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.

Trust significantly elevated Díaz’s international reputation. The novel’s ambitious structure and its exploration of capitalism, financial power, and authorship positioned him as one of the most intellectually daring contemporary writers. The success of Trust confirmed his status as a major figure in 21st-century literary fiction.

2. The Book

Source: Amazon

In the triumphant 1920s, Benjamin Rask and his wife Helen dominate New York: he, a financial magnate who has amassed a fortune; she, the daughter of eccentric aristocrats. But as the decade draws to a close, and their excesses reveal a dark side, suspicion begins to surround the Rasks…

This is the starting point of “Bonds” (the first part of the book Trust), a bestselling 1937 novel that all of New York seems to have read, and which tells a story that can, however, be told in several other ways.

Trust is divided into four interconnected parts, each offering a different version of the same story and challenging the reader’s understanding of truth and authorship.

The first part, Bonds, is a fictional 1930s novel written by Harold Vanner. It tells the story of Benjamin Rask, a wealthy financier, and his wife Helen, portraying them as distant and tragic figures. That is an external and possibly sensationalist version.

The second part, My Life, is an unfinished autobiography written by Andrew Bevel, a powerful Wall Street magnate who clearly resembles Rask. Bevel seeks to correct what he considers the false portrayal of his life in Vanner’s novel, it is an attempt to control the narrative.

The third part, A Memoir, Remembered, is narrated by Ida Partenza, Bevel’s secretary. She recounts how she was hired to ghostwrite Bevel’s autobiography and gradually uncovers the hidden role of his wife, Mildred. That is a critical outsider's perspective.

The fourth part consists of Mildred Bevel’s private diary, which offers her own fragmented perspective. Together, the four texts reveal how wealth shapes not only history, but also the stories we believe. Mildred's diary is the voice that ultimately reshapes the entire story.

3. Interview and video about the author

YouTube - Service 95 - Hernán Díaz on Writing Trust

YouTube - Service 95 - Dua Lipa In Conversation With Hernan Diaz, Author Of Trust

4. Discussion Questions for Trust (Parts I & II)

by Hernán Díaz

1. Who do we believe?

In Part I (“Bonds”), we read a story about Benjamin and Helen Rask.

In Part II (“My Life”), Andrew Bevel tells his own story.

○ Which version feels more believable to you?

○ Why?

2. Main Differences

○ What are the biggest differences between Benjamin Rask and Andrew Bevel?

○ How are their wives (Helen and Mildred) different in the two texts?

○ Why do you think these differences are important?

3. How is Wealth Shown?

○ How does each part describe rich people and the world of finance?

○ Does Part I criticize rich people more?

○ Does Part II try to defend them?

4. The Wives’ Role 

Compare Helen and Mildred.

○ How intelligent and independent are they in each story?

○ Do they seem strong, controlled, misunderstood, or something else?

5. The 1929 Stock Market Crash

○ How is the crash described in both parts?

○ Is Bevel/Rask responsible in any way?

○ Does each story judge him differently?

6. Writing Style

Part I reads like a traditional novel.

Part II feels like a personal explanation or defense.

○ How does the style change your opinion of the characters?

○ Which style did you prefer?

7. Why Write a Second Version?

○ Why do you think Andrew Bevel wants to tell his own version of the story?

○ What does this say about power and reputation?

8. Loneliness and Power

Both men seem distant and emotionally cold.

○ Why are they like this?

○ Is their personality connected to money and success?

9. What Is the Truth?

○ After reading both parts, do you think we can know the “real” truth?

○ Or does the novel suggest that truth depends on who tells the story?

10. Your Personal Reaction

○ After reading both sections, whose story affected you more?

○ Did your opinion change between Part I and Part II? Why?

Discussion Questions to Use with the Timeline

After reading the timeline, reflect on the following questions:

● How does knowing this timeline change your view of Bevel/Rask?

● Is he a genius investor — or someone who benefits from crisis?

● Does the crash seem like an accident, or something predictable?

5. Financial Vocabulary

Financial Vocabulary from Trust

1. Speculation / Speculative Activity

● Buying shares or assets expecting prices to rise quickly.

● In the novel: Investors in the 1920s (including Rask/Bevel) often take big risks to make fast profits.

2. Stock Market / Trading

● The buying and selling of company shares.

● In the novel: The rise and fall of shares drives the characters’ wealth and anxiety.

3. Market Collapse / Crash

● A sudden, steep fall in stock prices.

● In the novel: The 1929 crash affects everyone’s fortunes and shows the fragility of wealth.

4. Wealth Concentration

● The accumulation of extreme wealth in the hands of very few people.

● In the novel: Bevel’s rise illustrates how few can dominate finance and public perception.

5. Public Perception / Reputation as Currency

● The idea that trust and fame are as valuable as money in maintaining wealth.

● In the novel: Bevel carefully shapes how people see him, almost like managing a financial asset.

6. Financial Risk / Exposure

● The possibility of losing money due to investment decisions.

● In the novel: Risk-taking drives both the success and the near collapse of fortunes.

7. Philanthropy as Social Investment

● Giving money to cultural or educational institutions to secure social influence.

● In the novel: Bevel uses charitable acts to cement his reputation and legitimacy.

8. Economic Downturn / Recession

● A period when the economy slows, businesses fail, and unemployment rises.

● In the novel: The aftermath of the 1929 crash creates wider social and economic consequences.

9. Insider Knowledge / Privileged Information

● Knowing something about markets or investments that most people do not.

● In the novel: Wealthy investors like Bevel benefit from information and influence that ordinary people don’t have.

10. Illusion of Stability

● A false sense that wealth, markets, or power are secure and predictable.

● In the novel: Both narratives show that fortunes can vanish overnight, despite appearances.

6. Mini Financial Timeline: 1929

Before 1929 – The “Roaring Twenties”

● The U.S. economy is growing quickly.

● Many people invest in the stock market.

● Stock prices rise very fast.

● Some people buy shares with borrowed money (this increases risk).

● There is a lot of optimism and speculation.

👉 Connection to the novel: This is the world in which Rask/Bevel becomes extremely wealthy.

Early 1929 – Warning Signs

● Experts begin to worry that stock prices are too high.

● Some investors quietly start selling their shares.

● The market becomes unstable.

👉 Discussion link: Who understands the danger? Who profits from it?

October 24, 1929 – “Black Thursday”

● Many investors panic and try to sell their shares

● Stock prices fall quickly.

● Banks and large investors try to calm the market by buying shares.

October 29, 1929 – “Black Tuesday”

● Panic continues.

● Millions of shares are sold.

● Prices collapse.

● Many investors lose everything.

👉 This is the moment usually called the Stock Market Crash of 1929.

After the Crash (1930s)

● Thousands of banks fail.

● Businesses close.

● Millions of people lose their jobs.

● This period becomes known as the Great Depression.

 

7. List of characters

1. Correspondences between characters (the “two versions”)

In Bonds (fictional novel)	In the other parts	Role in the story
Benjamin Rask	Andrew Bevel	New York financial magnate whose fortune and reputation are at the center of the story.
Helen Rask	Mildred Bevel	An extremely intelligent and cultured wife; her true role in the fortune is one of the mysteries of the novel.
Leopold	Helen's Father
Doctor treating Helen	Mildred's Doctors	They intervene during the wife's illness.

This shows how the first part rewrites real history, changing names and emphasizing certain features.

2. Main Characters for Each Narrator

Bonds - Fictional story inspired by the Bevels.

• Benjamin Rask – mysterious and extremely wealthy financier.

• Helen Rask – brilliant wife whose illness dominates the plot.

• Leopold – Helen's Father.

• Helen's doctors – intervene during her decline.

________________________________________

My Life (Andrew's autobiography)

• Andrew Bevel – attempts to rebuild his public reputation.

• Mildred Bevel – presented as a refined wife and music lover.

• William Bevel – Andrew's father, a key figure in the creation of his wealth.

• Adelaide Bevel – Andrew's mother, associated with high society.

• Harold Vanner – financial partner or ally.

What are you reading: " TRUST by Hernan Diaz"

Marta Moreno's contribution

 The Book & The Author

Wikipedia

TRUST by HERNAN DIAZ. When I first heard about Trust in the New York Times 100 Best Books of the 21st Century, I felt intrigued by the fact that an Argentinian writer had won the Pulitzer Prize with a novel written in English. I bought it a few days later and left it to sleep on a bookshelf. 

I have always felt fascinated by those who live between two languages and those who feel more at home writing in a language that is not their mother tongue. This is the case of Joseph Conrad, who apparently was hard to understand when speaking because he had such a thick Polish accent. And nowadays we have the example of Junot Diaz, whose novel The Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao drifts seamlessly from Spanish to English and back. On the other side of the spectrum, Benjamin Labatut has chosen to write Un verdor terrible and Maniac in Spanish but he could perfectly have written these books in English. However, in his own words, they would have been totally different. Far from comparing myself with such geniuses, I’d say that I often find it easier to express myself in English than in Spanish when it comes to writing, and I feel that my voice is definitely different in each language.

I imagined Diaz as the child of immigrants who spent most of his life in the US, but in this I was mistaken. It’s true that his parents had to flee the Argentinian dictatorship when he was very little,  seeking asylum in Sweden. This is how he ended up growing up bilingual, speaking Spanish at home and Swedish at school and in the rest of his everyday life. One day a novel in English fell into his hands and he fell unexpectedly in love with American literature. Little by little, with the help of a dictionary he followed the story and this was the beginning of his lifelong passion. 

Hernan Diaz studied English Literature in Argentina, where his family returned in the 1980s, continued his studies at King’s College London and, to cut a long story short, became a professor at Columbia University in New York.

Amazon

When finally I picked up Trust this summer, I found myself immediately absorbed in a tale that reminded me of the great classics. The book, which  tells the story of the richest man in the world and his problematic relationship with his wife, is divided into four parts: the first one is a novel inside the novel, the second the notes for an autobiography written by somebody who reminds us of the main character of the first part, the third the memoirs of the secretary who helped write the autobiography, and the fourth the journal of the other key character, the wife. Only when reaching the end will we be able to put all the pieces of the puzzle together and pass judgment on each of the characters. 

The book can be obscure sometimes, especially when it gets into detail about the financial operations that make the protagonist amass his legendary wealth. If you are familiar with this field, this will surely add to the enjoyment of this masterpiece. If not, as it was my case, it will not stop you from relishing every single line of this novel.