Oct 20th, 2016
Blog written by Melissa
Quoting from the New York Times review by J. Luzzi September 2013:
“The Story of a New Name” is the second part of a trilogy that began with “My Brilliant Friend.” Both novels are primarily set in Naples, are Naples, as they teem with the city’s dialect, violence and worldview. Tracing the friendship between Lila Cerullo and Elena Greco, two extraordinary and troubled girls who become extraordinary and troubled women, Elena’s first-person account charts what scholars and politicians alike have ominously labeled the Southern Question: the cultural and economic divide between north and south that has defined Italian life for centuries. But history never overpowers what is at heart a local story about the families living along a poor Neapolitan stradone, or avenue, with intricate plotlines spun like fine thread around Elena and Lila.
Our Book Club continued reading the epic saga of friendship in Ferrante’s second book of the Neopolitan series; The Story of a New Name”. We were thankful the novel included a reminder map of who’s who - and we ventured forth into the heart of the story of this unique friendship which provoked fantastic discussions about feminism, class, politics and literature. The sensitivity and intimacy of the writing had us wondering whether the ‘anonymous’ writer may be writing autobiographically – and if not - even greater credit to her skill and imagination.
The friendship between the women is both fraught and inspirational for each of them. They seem to serve as the grit for each other’s pearls which is uncomfortable at times to observe and yet somehow strangely understandable. It is also fascinating to track their individual, independent journeys and those of the entire neighbourhood - and indeed that of the experience women’s freedom during this era and the cultural and political atmosphere of Italy and Europe at the time.
This rare writer’s voice feels honestly, maturely and deeply female, a raw uncut perspective of truth, whose story is identifiable and believable. It is a joy to read a female story that is completely devoid of cliché, stereotype and predictability – content that is both intimate and worldly – in a structure that is beautifully organised and satisfying.
Many of us, inspired by this intimate and intelligently written drama, have now completed all four novels in the sequence. Highly recommended.
Our rating for this book is 8.5/10 and it is described as sensitive, intelligent and intimate.
Our next meeting is on Thursday Nov 10th at Megan's and the book choice is Reckoning : A Memoir by Magda Szubanski.
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