The railing (L’inferriata)

Diletta, a student in her last year of high school, strong and rebellious, fights against the hypocritical dynamics of the archaic Sicilian mentality, embodied by her family. The love for a young man of lower social class encouraged her to rebel against a programmed and landlocked life. When the family finally accepts the young boyfriend at home, Diletta realizes that Mario accepts the respectability she had always fought against and, shocking once again the whole family, she decides to break the engagement.

In front of the fire at the refinery ravaging Ortigia beach (Syracuse), Diletta is forced to reflect on what to do. Like a contemporary character, she is caught between a past she wants to turn her back on and a present where she feels the shallowness and emptiness.

A realism filtered by extraordinary imaginative skills that brings Laura Di Falco to Federico De Roberto and Luigi Pirandello.

Laura Di Falco 

Born in the province of Syracuse, Laura Di Falco studied at the Scuola Normale in Pisa (Public institute for higher education). After her debut in 1950 with a short story published in Mondo (an important Italian literary review in those days), she became a successful writer with her first book Paura del giorno (Fear of the day), published in 1954 by Mondadori, which gained extraordinary success among audience and critics.

Courted by the most important Italian publishers, she has also published with Rizzoli.

She was a two-time finalist at the Strega Prize (most prestigious Italian literary award): with Una donna disponibile (An available woman) in 1959 and with L’inferriata (The railing) in 1976, introduced and supported by Noble Prize winner Eugenio Montale. Her novels were translated in many countries. She won the Savarese award with Le tre mogli (The three wives).

Genre: Fiction

Series: Reprint

Available product forms