What can I say about these four books that hasn’t already been said?
Not much as it turns out.
Well, a certain amount of much-ness. They’re brilliant. They’re frustrating.
I read the first two voraciously, cover-to-cover, immersed in the texture of Elena Ferrante’s prose. The last two I skimmed.
I waited for the structure of the story to emerge … then I remembered why I don’t read books in this genre very often.
With a certain amount of frustration, I uncharitably concluded at the end of the four books, that the story could’ve been done in two. Traditional ‘literature’ just isn’t my thing.
So why did I persevere?
I wanted to know how the story ended, which it didn’t, have an ending, I mean. And I wanted to know what all the fuss was about. Now I know.
If this genre is your thing, you’ll love the Neapolitan Novels, if not? Maybe like me you’ll appreciate them for what they are.
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More Toni Childs …