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In the Margins: On the Pleasures of Reading and Writing
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38/99
Critics' Rating Index
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Readers' Rating Index
87/99
Scholars' Citation Index
98/99
Volume of Reviews
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About This Book
Four new and revelatory essays by the author of My Brilliant Friend and The Lost Daughter In 2020, Claire Luchette in O, The Oprah Magazine described the beloved Italian novelist Elena Ferrante as "an oracle among authors." Here, in these four crisp essays, Ferrante offers a rare look at the origins of her literary powers. She writes about her influences, her struggles, and her formation as both a reader and a writer; she describes the perils of "bad language" and suggests ways in which it has long excluded women's truth; she proposes a choral fusion of feminine talent as she brilliantly discourses on the work of Emily Dickinson, Gertrude Stein, Ingeborg Bachmann, and many others. Here is a subtle yet candid book by "one of the great novelists of our time" about adventures in literature, both in and out of the margins.
Reviews
"She doesn't present them as such — there's no prescription, only an outline of what she's learned and how it's helped her (and by implication, how it might help anyone else)."
"This book is a true treasure and could provide an important guide for other marginalized writers looking for their own voices."
"pickings are slim ..."
"She is both less aggressive and less elusive than she appears in her interviews, laying out her ideas in a straightforward manner, defining her terms and identifying her sources, both personal and literary."
"Four essays illuminate the mind of Ferrante (The Lying Life of Adults) in this dazzling collection ..."
"Perhaps it would be more revelatory to hear Ferrante's responses to contemporary critical views that underscore the connection between personal identity and art ..."
"It's not that these essays aren't intriguing; it's just that Ferrante's fiction is so compelling, often shocking in its intensity, that these lectures feel like, well, lectures."
"These essays might not bring us any closer to finding out who Ferrante really is."
"That enjoyment is infectious."
"Ferrante can't help but arouse intrigue and admiration, but I was left wanting more – ideally fiction."
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