The Unmasking of Elena Ferrante: Ignore the Controversy and Read her Books

This past week Claudio Gatti, an Italian journalist, unmasked the woman who writes as Elena Ferrante, the secretive novelist who wrote the Neapolitan novels.  Elena Ferrante turns out to be the pseudonym of Anita Raja, a Rome-based translator.

Few people seem to be applauding Gatti for his clever investigative journalism.  Ferrante long made it clear that she wished for anonymity because she is not interested in fame and wanted her books to speak for themselves.  Besides invading her privacy, Gatti may have ended a literary career because in the past Ferrante has threatened to give up writing if she were ever revealed.

I think it best to ignore Gatti and just read the novels, as their author wants.  Here are my reviews of the Neapolitan quartet:

My Brilliant Friend:  http://schatjesshelves.blogspot.ca/2015/11/review-of-my-brilliant-friend-by-elena.html

The Story of a New Name:  http://schatjesshelves.blogspot.ca/2015/12/review-of-story-of-new-name-by-elena.html

Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay: http://schatjesshelves.blogspot.ca/2015/12/review-of-those-who-leave-and-those-who.html

The Story of the Lost Child:  http://schatjesshelves.blogspot.ca/2015/12/review-of-story-of-lost-child-by-elena.html