The Penguin Book of Italian Short Stories by Jhumpa Lahiri

The Penguin Book of Italian Short Stories

Jhumpa Lahiri

Penguin Publishing Group · Paperback · September 15, 2020

A landmark collection of stories--nearly half appearing in English for the first time--selected and introduced by Pulitzer Prize winner Jhumpa Lahiri A Penguin Classic When Jhumpa Lahiri decided to read exclusively in Italian, a language she had studied for many years, her life as a reader--and writer--took a surprising turn.

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Who it’s for
A century of Italian short fiction opens into a lively, varied portrait of literary tradition.
Themes
Regional landscapes and private passions, Twentieth-century political events
Genres
Italian Literary Collections, Short Story Anthologies, Italian Fiction

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About this book

A landmark collection of stories--nearly half appearing in English for the first time--selected and introduced by Pulitzer Prize winner Jhumpa Lahiri A Penguin Classic When Jhumpa Lahiri decided to read exclusively in Italian, a language she had studied for many years, her life as a reader--and writer--took a surprising turn. Complete immersion in this rich literary heritage brought fresh insight and unexpected freedom.

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This collection brings together forty writers who have shaped her love of the Italian language and profound appreciation for its literature. More than half of the stories featured in this volume have been translated into English for the first time, and the wide-ranging selection includes well-known authors such as Italo Calvino, Elsa Morante, and Luigi Pirandello alongside many captivating rediscoveries. Poets, journalists, visual artists, musicians, editors, critics, teachers, scientists, politicians, translators: the writers that inhabit these pages represent a dynamic cross-section of Italian society. Together they reflect more than a hundred years of Italy's vibrant and diverse short-story tradition, their powerful voices resonating through regional landscapes, private passions, and the dramatic political events of the twentieth century. For more than seventy-five years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 2,000 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

Many Italian Voices

A century of Italian short fiction opens into a lively, varied portrait of literary tradition.

Come here for

  • Forty writers, from familiar names to rediscoveries
  • Stories shaped by Italy’s regional and political landscapes

Expect

  • A wide-ranging collection spanning more than a hundred years
  • Nearly half the stories appear in English for the first time

Where it sits

Italian Literary Collections78%
Italian Fiction63%
Short Story Anthologies53%

Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.

Publisher categories

  • Short Story Anthologies
  • Literary Fiction
  • Italian Literary Collections
Authors
Jhumpa Lahiri
Publisher
Penguin Publishing Group
Published
September 15, 2020
Format
Paperback
Theme
Regional landscapes and private passions · Twentieth-century political events
Reading lane
Short Story Anthologies