In 2019 Bokförlaget Polaris received the C.M. Lerici Foundation literature support for the publication of “Den återlämnade flickan” (“L’Arminuta”, Einaudi editore) by Donatella Di Pietrantonio.
The book was translated from Italian to Swedish by Johanna Hedenberg, the Swedish translator of Elena Ferrante.
Set against the stark, beautiful landscape of Abruzzo in central Italy, this is a compelling story about mothers and daughters, about responsibility, siblings, and caregiving. Without warning or explanation, an unnamed 13-year-old girl is sent away from the family she has always thought of as hers to live with her birth family: a large, chaotic assortment of individuals whom she has never met and who seem anything but welcoming. Thus begins a new life, one of struggle, tension, and conflict, especially between the young girl and her mother. But in her relationship with Adriana and Vincenzo, two of her newly acquired siblings, she will find the strength to start again and to build a new and enduring sense of self.
Born in Teramo Province, Abruzzo, Donatella Di Pietrantonio completed her studies in the provincial capital, Aquila, and now lives in Penne. Her short fiction has been published by Granta Italy, and her novel, “Bella mia”, was nominated for the Strega Prize and won the Brancati Prize. “Den återlämnade flickan”, her third novel, won the Campiello Prize.
Do you want to read the book?
You can find it at this link:
https://www.bokforlagetpolaris.se/den-aterlaemnade-flickan/t-0/9789177950653
Enjoy the reading!
