The mysterious Elena Ferrante (not her real name) concludes her astonishing Neapolitan series with this fourth volume in the story of a decades-long friendship between two women born in an impoverished neighborhood in post-World War II Naples. If that description sounds sentimental, think again 鈥� Ferrante鈥檚 books are as fierce as they are dazzling. Although it would be most powerful to read all four (starting with 鈥淢y Brilliant Friend鈥�), the novels can also be enjoyed independently. (CSMonitor.com review, 9/23/15)
(Europa Editions, 480 pp.)
