Arturo's Island

Morante's 1957 novel tells the story of Arturo, an Italian boy who lives alone on his father's island where he is cared for by a staff of black-clad women. When the boy reaches his early teens, his father returns with a new bride, a girl only a few years older than Arturo himself. His world is redefined by the appearance of this stepmother, whom, initially, he despises. She soon wins him over, and Arturo finds himself attracted to her perhaps too much. A fine literary soap opera.
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