Sagittarius
By Natalia Ginzburg

Standing in front of the mirror, smoking and humming a popular song, she would slip into her fur coat and turn round a few times to check on her stockings and the heels of her shoes. Then she would leave to go to her sisters, to see what they were having for lunch and whether they had counted the takings.'A domineering mother moves from a small town to the suburbs of a city with her daughter and son-in-law, yet soon grows restless with her new life. When she strikes up a friendship with the mysterious Scilla, her world suddenly seems rich with potential and before long, the pair are planning to open an art gallery together.After a series of afternoons spent over coffee granitas in local bars, however, it quickly becomes apparent that there is more to Scilla than meets the eye.Class, in all its manifestations and aspirations, is at the heart ofand Sagittarius, as misplaced confidence and ambition gone awry leads inexorably towards the downfall of a family. I'm utterly entranced by Ginzburg's style - her mysterious directness, her salutary ability to lay things bare that never feels contrived or cold, only necessary, honest, clear.'and Maggie Nelson Ginzburg gives us a new template for the female voice and an idea of what it might sound like.'and Rachel Cusk There is no one quite like Ginzburg for telling it like it is. Her unique, immediately recognizable voice is at once clear and shaded, artless and sly, able to speak of the deepest sorrows and smallest pleasures of everyday life.'and Phillip Lopate