Behind Closed Doors: Her Father's House and Other Stories of Sicily
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Stories of Sicily, immigration, and the lives of Sicilian women in the early 20th century.Publishers WeeklyMore than 60 years after her death, Sicilian realist Messina (1887-1944) gets her first English translation, 10 stories published between 1909 and 1928 that focus on the downtrodden, poor and middle-class women of her native island. Two stories, "America 1911" and "America 1918," explore immigration and emigration from expectant departure to unsettling return, while "Grandmother Lidda" takes the intimate perspective of an elderly mother left behind. In "Her Father's House," Vanna returns seeking refuge from her woeful marriage to a Rome lawyer, only to find she has lost her place in her family. Meanwhile, the deaf mute protagonist of "Ciancianedda" struggles to communicate with her new husband. Messina's raw and psychologically deft tales render these women's lives with pathos and dignity, and Magistro's lucid translation is at once lyrical and immediate. Absorbing and culturally rich, these stories should help secure Messina's place in Italian letters. (Oct.)Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information
Grace (Grazia) 23America 1911 (La Merica) 32Dainty shoes (Le scarpette) 48Grandmother Lidda (Nonna Lidda) 58America 1918 (La Merica) 67I take you out (Ti-nesciu) 78Her father's house (Casa paterna) 84Ciancianedda 106Red roses (Rose rosse) 126Caterina's loom (Il telaio di Caterina) 135
