€18.99
‘Thrillingly addictive, magnificent, luxurious . . . as staggering and absorbing as a great 19th-century novel’ Telegraph
‘I loved it and it had been a long time since I had read anything that gave me such life and joy’ Natalia Ginzburg
The first unabridged English translation of the electrifying novel of secrets and delusions, from one of the greatest Italian writers of the twentieth century.
Elisa – orphaned as a child, raised by a ‘fallen woman’, fed by fairy tales – has lived in an outlandish imaginary world for years. When her guardian dies, she feels compelled to confront her family’s tortured and dramatic past, weaving the tale of her mother and grandmother through a history of intrigue, treachery, deception and desire. But as her saga of three generations of Sicilian women proceeds, it becomes something else entirely, taking in a whole legacy of oppression and injustice. By turns flamboyant and intense, raging and funny, Lies and Sorcery is a celebration of the female imagination, and the power of storytelling itself.
First published in 1948, Elsa Morante’s debut novel won the Viareggio Prize and earned her the lasting admiration of generations of writers from Italo Calvino and Natalia Ginzburg to Elena Ferrante.
Translated by Jenny McPhee
WINNER OF THE ALTA 2024 ITALIAN PROSE IN TRANSLATION AWARD
WINNER OF THE JOHN FLORIO PRIZE
SHORTLISTED FOR THE OXFORD-WEIDENFELD PRIZE 2024
In stock
Beginning with the death of Elisa’s guardian, ‘Lies and Sorcery’ recounts this young woman’s attempt to reclaim reality by uncovering the dark details of her family’s tortured and dramatic history. The reader is drawn into a tale, sweeping in scope, of family secrets, of intrigue and treachery, that is also an exploration of political and social injustice. Throughout, Morante’s elegant and elaborate prose, as well as her drive to get at the heart of her characters’ complex motivations and relationships and their all-too self-destructive behaviour hold us spellbound.
| Weight | 0.544 kg |
|---|---|
| Dimensions | 19.8 × 12.8 × 3.8 cm |
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| Cover | Paperback |
| Pages | 800 |
| Language | English |
| Edition | Reprint |
| Dewey | 853.914 (edition:23) |
| Readership | General – Trade / Code: K |
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