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Reading Italian women writers, in translation: The Story of a New Name

The Story of a New Name book coverThe group will read selections from a broad range of writers beginning with Elena Ferrante's four volumes that make up her outstanding work, The Neapolitan Quartet. Through the writings of various authors, listed below, we will read and discuss stories, several set in World War II  and the post-war years, that remain relevant to our lives today. Issues of gender, class, the dynamics of family and friendship, culture, language, and the politics of place come together as multi-layered works of art.

This month we'll be reading The Story of a New Name by Elena Ferrante ; translated from the Italian by Ann Goldstein.

In The Story of a New Name, Lila has recently married and made her enterée into the family business; Elena, meanwhile, continues her studies and her exploration of the world beyond the neighborhood that she so often finds stifling. Love, jealousy, family, freedom, commitment, and above all friendship: these are signs under which both women live out this phase in their stories. Marriage appears to have imprisoned Lila, and the pressure to excel is at times too much for Elena. Yet the two young women share a complex and evolving bond that is central to their emotional lives and is a source of strength in the face of life's challenges. In these Neapolitan Novels, Elena Ferrante, the acclaimed author of The Days of Abandonment, gives readers a poignant and universal story about friendship and belonging.

Date:
Wednesday, June 6, 2018
Time:
4:30pm - 7:00pm
Time Zone:
Eastern Time - US & Canada (change)
Location:
Watson Room
Categories:
  Adult Events     Book Discussions     Recurring Events  

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