The fourth volume in the reclusive author’s critically praised series comes out in September. Set in Italy, the story begins in the 1950s and follows two women over the course of their lives. Narrated by a successful writer named after the author, Elena recounts her complicated friendship with Lila, a ferociously intelligent person who, in the third book, "Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay," struggles to get by as a single mother while working in horrifying conditions at a sausage factory. Ferrante is a master at portraying political protests and corruption – and the turmoil experienced by two women who took different paths.
