The No-Guitar Blues

Why is Los Lobos particularly inspiring for Fausto? Research the group and incorporate details about their origins and career. Why might Fausto see himself in them?

Fausto is the story’s protagonist. Who or what is the antagonist? Use details from the story to support your answer.

The story largely revolves around Fausto rather than the rest of his family. Why did Soto choose to write the story this way? What would change if we heard more from his mother, father, sister, or brother?

This guide discusses how “The No-Guitar Blues” uses and subverts Faustian archetypes. How would the story differ if Fausto didn’t have his moral epiphany at the end—if the story were a straightforward Faust tale? Drawing on other Faust myths, how would it end?

Gary Soto is known for exploring the day-to-day realities of marginalized cultures. How does he do this in “The No-Guitar Blues”? How is Fausto’s tale specific to the Chicano experience, and how is it universal to all American teens?

Soto was born and raised in Fresno, California. Read about Soto’s background on the Academy of American Poets’s website and discuss how his experience might have influenced the plot and characters of “The No-Guitar Blues.”

Soto’s short story entitled “Broken Chain” features a young male character named Alfonso. Read the story and compare Alfonso to Fausto. What similarities and differences do you notice?

Would the story be the same if Fausto’s mother had found a guitar instead of a guitarrón in the basement? What extra layers of symbolism does the guitarrón add, particularly as another type of guitar rather than a completely different instrument like an accordion?