Kindle
$9.99
Available instantly
Audible Logo Audiobook
$0.00
with membership trial
Hardcover
$16.88
Paperback
$21.69
$16.88
Get Fast, Free Shipping with Amazon Prime FREE Returns
FREE delivery Monday, May 13 on orders shipped by Amazon over $35
Or fastest delivery Wednesday, May 8. Order within 20 hrs 38 mins
Only 2 left in stock - order soon.
$$16.88 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details
Price
Subtotal
$$16.88
Subtotal
Initial payment breakdown
Shipping cost, delivery date, and order total (including tax) shown at checkout.
Ships from
Amazon.com
Ships from
Amazon.com
Sold by
Amazon.com
Sold by
Amazon.com
Returns
Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt
Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt
This item can be returned in its original condition for a full refund or replacement within 30 days of receipt.
Read full return policy
Returns
Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt
This item can be returned in its original condition for a full refund or replacement within 30 days of receipt.
Read full return policy
Payment
Secure transaction
Your transaction is secure
We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Learn more
Payment
Secure transaction
We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Learn more
Amazon book clubs early access
Loading your book clubs
There was a problem loading your book clubs. Please try again.
Not in a club? Learn more
Amazon book clubs early access

Join or create book clubs

Choose books together

Track your books
Bring your club to Amazon Book Clubs, start a new book club and invite your friends to join, or find a club that’s right for you for free.
Explore Amazon Book Clubs
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

Follow the author

Elena Ferrante
Follow
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

In the Margins. On the Pleasures of Reading and Writing Hardcover – March 17, 2022

by Elena Ferrante (Author)
4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 247 ratings
See all formats and editions
Great on Kindle
Great Experience. Great Value.
iphone with kindle app
Putting our best book forward
Each Great on Kindle book offers a great reading experience, at a better value than print to keep your wallet happy.

Explore your book, then jump right back to where you left off with Page Flip.

View high quality images that let you zoom in to take a closer look.

Enjoy features only possible in digital – start reading right away, carry your library with you, adjust the font, create shareable notes and highlights, and more.

Discover additional details about the events, people, and places in your book, with Wikipedia integration.
Get the free Kindle app: Link to the kindle app page Link to the kindle app page
Enjoy a great reading experience when you buy the Kindle edition of this book. Learn more about Great on Kindle, available in select categories.
View Kindle Edition
{"desktop_buybox_group_1":[{"displayPrice":"$16.88","priceAmount":16.88,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"16","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"88","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"w827%2BuvDeEkJbntwHllUJiqu%2F6TJZ4GaifSMY14XMpEBsfSY73n5FsH%2FSdstE1JXvx6HO%2BLRBawO9Z2jUeewv7YbJc%2FHesAm2PL8C52J75FkZc9g%2F55E7rJgyOZjTXaQAzMtCtwxdcuOW2JwRKDygg%3D%3D","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"NEW","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":0}]}

Purchase options and add-ons

“Elena Ferrante has established herself as the foremost writer in Italy - and the world.” THE SUNDAY TIMES

A delightful collection of original essays on reading and writing.

From the internationally acclaimed author of My Brilliant Friend, The Lying Life of Adults, and The Lost Daughter, come four revelatory pieces offering rare insight into the author’s formation as a writer and life as a reader. Ferrante warns us of the perils of “bad language”―historically alien to the truth of women―and advocates for a collective fusion of female talent as she brilliantly discourses on the work of her most beloved authors.  A delightful collection of essays exploring reading and writing from the internationally acclaimed author of My Brilliant Friend and The Lying Life of Adults. 

Ferrante’s writing has been described as compulsive (The Times) and astonishing (Guardian), her novels have sold millions and been translated into many languages as well as adapted for TV internationally.

Previous page
  1. Language
    English
  2. Publisher
    Europa Editions
  3. Publication date
    March 17, 2022
  4. Dimensions
    5.47 x 0.59 x 8.35 inches
  5. ISBN-10
    1787704165
  6. ISBN-13
    978-1787704169
  7. See all details
Next page
Layla
"Layla" by Colleen Hoover for $7.19
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Colleen Hoover comes a novel that explores life after tragedy and the enduring spirit of love. | Learn more

Frequently bought together

In the Margins. On the Pleasures of Reading and Writing
$16.88
Get it as soon as Monday, May 13
Only 2 left in stock - order soon.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
+
Frantumaglia: A Writer's Journey
$16.32
Get it as soon as Sunday, May 12
Only 1 left in stock - order soon.
Sold by Supperior seller1 and ships from Amazon Fulfillment.
+
The Days of Abandonment: A Novel
$9.99
Get it as soon as Monday, May 13
In Stock
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
Total price:
To see our price, add these items to your cart.
Details
Added to Cart
Some of these items ship sooner than the others.
Show details Hide details
Choose items to buy together.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Europa Editions; 1st edition (March 17, 2022)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1787704165
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1787704169
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 7.9 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.47 x 0.59 x 8.35 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 247 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Elena Ferrante

Elena Ferrante

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Elena Ferrante is the author of seven novels, including four New York Times bestsellers; The Beach at Night, an illustrated book for children; and, Frantumaglia, a collection of letters, literary essays, and interviews. Her fiction has been translated into over forty languages and been shortlisted for the MAN Booker International Prize. In 2016 she was named one of TIME’s most influential people of the year and the New York Times has described her as “one of the great novelists of our time.” Ferrante was born in Naples.

Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
4.2 out of 5
247 global ratings
Great
4 Stars
Great
The book is a collection of essays designed for the Umberto Eco Lectures cycle, promoted by the University of Bologna, exploring the author’s journey through reading and writing.Elena Ferrante reveals herself in these kindhearted pages. She confesses that in her childhood she thought she would never write powerful books like those of great writers. In her essays, the author reflects on the different writing methods from which her novels are born. She also evokes multiple examples taken from other voices and authors that resonates in her books.According to Ferrante, “writing is getting comfortable with everything that has already been written“. She affirms that to talk about herself as a writer is imperative to talk about herself as a reader first, and also believes that only by writing is possible to try to make a difference. Ferrante concludes that literature written by women should seek its own truth and its space in history.In the Margins is an honest panorama on her life-long passion for literature and an examination on where she finds inspiration to write her books. It is a journey into the writer’s works. I recommend it to all Elena Ferrante’s fans and for those interested in the writing process.
Hide
Thank you for your feedback
Sorry, there was an error
Sorry we couldn't load the review

Top reviews from the United States

Thomas
5.0 out of 5 stars If you are a Ferrante fan then you will want to read this
Reviewed in the United States on October 14, 2023
Verified Purchase
I have read all of Ferrante’s work and found these short lectures extremely illuminating. She does not hide her influences, but rather carefully describes how she came to be Ferrante and the germs that led to her novels.
Helpful
 Report
Sense and Sensibility
4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting for hard-core Ferrante fans
Reviewed in the United States on December 29, 2022
Verified Purchase
For fans of Elena Ferrante, this is an interesting guide to her thoughts and some of her intellectual background as a reader and writer.
Helpful
 Report
donald e. davis
5.0 out of 5 stars From Writing Skills to Authorship
Reviewed in the United States on July 21, 2022
Verified Purchase
For those of us who struggled in a “Bone Head” course on the fundamentals of grammar, Ferrante’s “In the Margins” comes like a lightening bolt on what authorship is all about: the electricity of putting pen to page, fingers to keyboard and then transforming the scribbled gibberish in something beautiful. Oh, the anguishing pain! Oh, that supreme joy! Don’t miss a word of her remarkable story of giving written voice to our mirage of thoughts. And be sure to seek out the discovery of the female voice invading the empire of male literature. Ferrante’s Odyssey offers new light on twice told tales about the art of writing.
Helpful
 Report
Joseph McBee
3.0 out of 5 stars A Challenging Read
Reviewed in the United States on April 30, 2024
A challenging read. It's a series of written but never delivered lectures on books, reading, and writing that really comes across as romantic musings. It's beautiful in its way but not very accessible because the author is giving her readers a glimpse into her own mind and heart about her craft that sounds lovely but makes little sense to anyone but her because it is so very personal.
Helpful
 Report
Peter
5.0 out of 5 stars A Pleasure to Read
Reviewed in the United States on March 13, 2023
Verified Purchase
The mysterious Elena Ferrante is glimpsed though this book in a way the public doesn't normally get a chance to experience.

Great read, great service from the seller. I would recommend the book and the seller.
Helpful
 Report
Heather
5.0 out of 5 stars A must-read for writers
Reviewed in the United States on March 27, 2022
Revelatory and insightful, IN THE MARGINS is a must-read for writers. Ferrante provides an inside look at her reading and writing life, including a scholarly examination of Dante and other, more personal, essays in which she explores limitations placed on women and grappling with her own self doubt. I appreciate her honesty and advice.
5 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Sidsel´s Kindle
4.0 out of 5 stars Inspiring and dramatic content
Reviewed in the United States on June 28, 2022
Verified Purchase
I love all Elena Ferrantes books!
This one was esoecially inspiring to give in hard copy to my granddaughter, who wants to become a writer.
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
TapTheLine
5.0 out of 5 stars Elena Ferrante's pondering on the art of literature.
Reviewed in the United States on April 5, 2022
"I believe that the sense I have of writing -and all the struggles it involves- has to do with the satisfaction of staying beautifully within the margins and, at the same time, with the impression of loss, of waste, because of that success".

Elena Ferrante's elusive, enigmatic persona has become a subject of heated debates within the European literary world as her phenomenally influential corpus of work combined with her insistence to keep her identity concealed under the use of a pseudonym, intrigued and still pique the interest of the readers and critics around the world. Ferrante is mostly known for her renowned "Neapolitan Novels" quartet, a four-part series of books narrating the evolution of the relationship between two girls, Lenu and Lila, growing up in Naples during the course of the previous decades, beginning in the 1950s. The novels have been adapted into an equally successful television show by Saverio Costanzo who recounts the story as a whole, divided into four seasons, each corresponding to a book. The exceptional production values of the series, the magnificent performances, and the accurate representation of a foregone era are integrated into the main narrative that remains loyal to the original source, with carefully crafted dialogue parts and a melancholic atmosphere pervading the story that captivates the audience with its astuteness and precision in the description of life in Naples after the end of the Second World War.

Apart from Costanzo's series, there are several creators in both cinema and television who attempted to adapt Ferrante's work on screen, the latest example being The Lost Daughter by director Maggie Gyllenhaal, starring Olivia Colman in the role of Leda, a middle-aged divorcee who is tormented by the burden of memories of past choices that she made as a mother and the consequences for her loved ones. The themes of motherhood, broken family relationships, and the struggles of the contemporary Western woman are thoroughly explored almost in every work bearing the signature of the obscure Italian writer and her novels are a testament on the challenges that women have to face, lost in the multiplicity of the roles they assume today. For those who wish to learn more about Ferrante's impact on the contemporary artistic world, there is the documentary Ferrante Fever by Giacomo Durzi in which people from various fields of social, political, and cultural life such as Hillary Clinton, Roberto Saviano, and Jonathan Franzen try to analyze the sensational phenomenon of Ferante's success, analyzing parts of her work, while trying to locate that element which deems her writing style as one of the most arresting in contemporary European literature.

In In the Margins: On the Pleasures of Reading and Writing, Ferrante chronicles her first experiences as a reader during her childhood, while in the course of four separate chapters explains her perspective on writing, approaches the concept of truth in the literary context, the limitations imposed by form and genre and other subjects relating to her experience as an author. She also references authors and books that left a mark in her mind and heart and determined her own distinctive style. The first three chapters in the book ("Pain and Pen", "Aquamarine", "Histories, I") were initially written in the form of lectures intended to be given in the University of Bologna on three successive days in the autumn of 2020 but Covid-19 pandemic forced the organizers of the seminar to cancel the speeches which were however presented in Teatro Arena del Sole in Bologna in November of 2021 by the actress Manuela Mandracchia. The fourth essay, "Dante's Rib" was composed at the invitation of the Association of Italianists (ADI) and concluded the conference Dante and Other Classics on April 29, 2021.

In the first essay, Ferrante writes that her first impressions from literature were, almost exclusively, drawn by male authors and from an early age, she realized that being a female would be a setback in her attempts at producing original literary work: "Although I was a woman, I couldn't write as a woman except by violating what I was diligently trying to learn from the male tradition". Furthermore she makes an important distinction between the two only ways of writing which she recognizes: "the first compliant, the second impetuous". That distinction remains important and topical throughout this little book and dictates the manner in which Ferrante interprets her own work. The relationship between the two aforementioned modes of writing constitutes the main subject of the first essay. She advocates for the essential multiplicity of the "I Who Writes" by citing two passages from Virginia Woolf's work and concludes her reasoning with the aphorism: "The writer has no name". Perhaps that is the reason why Ferrante is so insistent in keeping her true identity hidden from the public as she perceives her writing self not as a unity by as a multiplicity of egos colluding in order to create a work of fiction which is reduced to a "convulsing act" instead of "an elegant studied gesture".

Both in the first and the third essay, Ferrante talks about the inevitability of form which is, in Samuel Beckett's words, "the only thing we can't do without in literature and any other place", though she believes that it is possible for an author to both abide to and deny the rules of the form and she cites as an example Gertrude Stein's book The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas in which the author "takes a highly structured genre like autobiography and deforms it", through the use of breakthrough narrative techniques balancing "in a complex interplay of identification and estrangement" which allows the author to find his own voice. Finally, Stein "upends the traditional relations between invented story, autobiographical truth, and biographical truth". Of course, as Ferrante is eager to ascertain her readers, there is no parthenogenesis in literature. The writer is forced to to adopt words and phrases that have been previously used by other writers. As she explicitly states: "we have to accept the fact that no word is truly ours" and she also points out that "writing is, rather, entering an immense cemetery where every tomb is waiting to be profaned". What Ferrante means is that the basic tools of an author, words, are only accessible through the act of reading texts written in the past. She also writes that "true sentences, good or epochal, always seek a path of their own within cliches. And cliches were once true sentences that dug a way among cliches".

Throughout the book, Ferrante references many significant authors such as Italo Svevo, Adriana Cavarero, Virginia Woolf, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Samuel Beckett, Emily Dickinson and others who support her solid arguments regarding the subject of truthful writing and its inextricable link with fervent reading. In the concluding essay which focuses on the work of one of the founders of the modern-day Italian language, Dante Alighieri, whose works set the precedent for other important writers such as Petrarch and Boccaccio who would follow, adding their own genius and establishing the basis of modern European literature. Ferrante first read Dante in the age of sixteen and since then his work heavily influenced her way of thinking and writing. According to Ferrante, Dante was the ideal reader as he "entered the others' worlds so inanimately that he was able to capture their secrets of meaning and beauty, and achieve through them a writing of his own". She also writes that his conception of Beatrice's character, Dante's muse and inspiration for writing the Divine Comedy, was way ahead of its time as until then, women were mainly portrayed as silent creatures with little or no tendency to the the more noble aspects of cultural and spiritual life. Beatrice, though, is a symbol of a woman who "has an understanding of God and speculative language" and her character summarizes "what is possible for women", something that evokes Ferrante's feelings of gratitude for Dante.

It would be an unforgivable omission not to mention Ferrante's New-York-based permanent translator, Ann Goldstein, who has been honored with a Guggenheim Fellowship and is the recipient of the PEN Renato Poggioli Translation Award. Goldstein interpretation of Ferrante's original texts is flawless and the English-speaking readership is fortunate enough to relish the Italian author's prose without losing anything from its finesse and beauty. In the Margins is not an easy book to read and you will have to re-read some of its passages in order to fully grasp the concepts which Ferrante so aptly handles. It is a great addition to the list of books on writing and those who aspire to write someday should definitely check out. For me, it was a great chance to get acquainted with one of the most ambiguous, cryptic writers of our era and provided plenty of thoughts to chew on, while prompting me to watch the television and film adaptations of Ferrante's books that look promising. Soon, I will start reading one of her fiction novels and a thorough review will follow.
4 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report

Top reviews from other countries

Translate all reviews to English
Alma Creations
5.0 out of 5 stars Essential reading
Reviewed in Canada on May 26, 2022
Verified Purchase
This book of lectures is a gem. Profound, informative, brilliant, unmistakably Ferrante. Each time I revisit it, I find it newer, more essential and increasingly gushing with sense.
Report
ANA
4.0 out of 5 stars IN THE MARGINS. - ELENA FERRANTE
Reviewed in Brazil on May 14, 2022
Verified Purchase
Muito interessante, porém como ela se refere a diversos autores durante a narrativa, embora sejam citações esclarecedoras que nos colocam obrigatoriamente em contato com eles, me surpreendeu. Não esperava encontrar este fato. Nada disto tira o mérito do conjunto da obra. É apenas uma opinião.
Report
Rajesh
5.0 out of 5 stars Light from a writer's heart
Reviewed in India on December 22, 2023
Verified Purchase
A profound book written with a sage's simplicity.
Report
Ulysses
1.0 out of 5 stars noioso
Reviewed in Italy on September 1, 2022
Verified Purchase
noises
Report
Anna Allen
1.0 out of 5 stars Dissapointing
Reviewed in Germany on July 2, 2022
Verified Purchase
Tiny, thin book which one could read in 30 minutes. I read 2 pages and it is very much “looking in your own navel” book. The sparse pages are used right at the beginning on photos of author’s school grammar exercises. Two pages with photos of child writing. I do get it, the author sold many books, considers herself important, but let’s not exaggerate. Who keeps their own exercise books from time when we started school and shares them with her audience? I bought this book because of The Guardian. It suppose to be the exciting read, but nothing can be further from the truth, plus, charging 18 euros for a few pages is outrageous. I assumed I am getting a decent book which will help me in my writing. Packing it up to go back.
Report