Natalia Ginzburg was born in Palermo, Italy in
1916. She was an Italian author whose work explored family
relationships, politics during and after the Fascist years and
World War II, and philosophy. She wrote novels, short stories, and
essays, for which she received the Strega Prize and Bagutta Prize.
Modest and intensely reserved, Ginzburg never shied away from the
traumas of history, whether writing about the Turin of her
childhood, the Abruzzi countryside, or contemporary Rome—all the
while approaching those traumas only indirectly, through the
mundane details and catastrophes of personal life. Most of her
works were also translated into English and published in the United
Kingdom and United States. She wrote acclaimed translations of both
Proust and Flaubert into Italian. She died in Rome in 1991.
Angus Davidson was known primarily for his work as
a translator and publisher and was associated with the circle of
artists, writers and intellectuals known as the Bloomsbury Group.
He translated the works of Alberto Moravia and Mario Praz, and
wrote an innovative biography of Edward Lear that focused on his
achievements as an artist.
Praise for Natalia Ginzburg's work
"Clarity, precision and wit mark the work of Natalia Ginzburg."
The New York Times Book Review
"I wish more people would read the Italian writer Natalia
Ginzburg." Mary Gordon, Mother Jones
"Natalia Ginzburg must surely be one of literature’s most
provocative and moving writers." Elle magazine
"Realistic, anchored by vivifying detail, crowded with wonderfully
vibrant characters, luminous with deep feeling, responsiveness, and
sympathy." Publishers Weekly
"Ginzburg draws her readers into her deceptively charming essays
with cascades of alluring, everyday detail, then stealthily
broaches moral questions of great weight and complexity. Wryly
witty, acutely observant, and unfailingly valiant, Ginzburg is a
revelation, a spur, and a joy." Booklist
"A glowing light of modern Italian literature . . . Ginzburg's
magic is the utter simplicity of her prose, suddenly illuminated by
one word that makes a lightning streak of a plain phrase. . . . As
direct and clean as if it were carved in stone, it yet speaks
thoughts of the heart." The New York Times Book Review
Praise for The Little Virtues:
"A stunning tour de force, The Little Virtues is a credo of
undaunted idealism." The New York Times Book Review
"There is one book . . . which has meant more to me than any other:
The Little Virtues, by the Italian novelist, essayist, playwright,
short-story writer, translator, and political activist Natalia
Ginzburg." The New Yorker Sept. 2016
"The book that taught me what I want to teach my daughter." Belle
Boggs, author of Mattaponi Queen
"Considered among the best writers in contemporary Italy, Ginzburg
should appeal to a wide American audience with this collection of
essays." Publishers Weekly
"These little virtues then, this little book, pack a tremendous
punch. By loving life, Ginzburg suggests, by working with love and
enthusiasm, by embracing the homeliest details of daily existence
with astonishment and joy, we may legitimately hope to conqueror
at least break even againstthe worldly and leaden forces of
materialism and fear." LA Times
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