My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante drew mixed reviews from members.
The book is a well written account of an intense friendship and rivalry between two girls, Lilla and Elena, growing up poor in post World War II Naples.
Both girls want to escape their circumstances (and in Lilla’s case, take her family members with her) and each eventually takes a different path, against a background of violence, resignation, anger, jealousy, envy, fear, despair (have I missed any negative emotions?), out-and-out madness and underlying loan shark corruption which permeates their neighbourhood.
It is quite a bleak book, sometimes a bit repetitive, but filled with a dizzying array of feuding characters and subplots and a relentless narrative which intensely scrutinises large and small events in the lives of the girls.
The main characters are not especially likeable and their relationships to their family members are fraught. But the author brilliantly captures the painful moments of the girls’ adolescence: the lack of self-confidence, poor self image, ignorance, desire to make one’s own decisions, brutality, and the huge influence of particular friends and of authority figures.
It is not until near the very end that you understand the title.
Members who met this month spent some time discussing the fact that the name Elena Ferrante is a pseudonym and the author has insisted on her anonymity since her first novel was published in 1992, saying that an author’s details are not necessary since the words speak for themselves.
Nevertheless, the Italian literary scene has spent a lot of time speculating as to the author’s true identity. The latest suggestion was made in September this year that the author was male - Domenico Starnone. Members dismissed this, saying that the details of the girls' adolescence rang so true they seemed autobiographical and could not have been written by a man. We also speculated as to whether the author remained anonymous because the violent events described in the book of murder and mayhem were true and close to home.
This novel is the first of four “Neapolitan” novels and is being made this year (has been made?) into an HBO drama series.
Digression
There are of course other female-centred books written by males (and vice versa).
Female-centred books written by males:
The Edith Trilogy by Frank Moorhouse
Brooklyn by Colm Toibin (on the list for February next year)
The Children Act by Ian McEwan
Male-centred books written by females:
The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton (May next year)
A Briefing for a Descent into Hell by Doris Lessing.
I’m sure you have an opinion on how well you think they do it and probably know many more titles to add to this list!
Happy reading!
Are you already in a bookclub?
You may feel that you cannot commit to another bookclub because you are already a member of one (or two!)
We’d still love you to join us just as a Newsletter subscriber. We’d love to hear what other bookclubs are reading and what you think are the pick of the titles that we must read!
In the same way, we hope you will take away from our reviews some pearlers to share with your regular club.
