The City and the House

From the author of All Our Yesterdays and The Little Virtues, an epistolary novel full of humanity, passion, and keen perception.

 Giuseppe is leaving his flat in the city of Rome, where he has lived for more than twenty years, to go and live with his brother in America. He must say goodbye to his cousin Roberta; to his former lover Lucrezia and her husband Piero; and to all his friends who used to gather for weekends at Le Margherite, Lucrezia’s splendid house in the country. But even before Giuseppe’s departure, friendships have begun to fracture as frustrated yearnings and past infidelities strain the bonds.

The sale of Le Margherite marks the end of an era and its old inhabitants and visitors are left to pursue happiness on their own. Their stories unfold through an exchange of letters that reveal with great poignancy the thoughts, passions and desires of the protagonists. 

‘Ginzburg’s beautiful words have such solidarity. I read her with joy and amazement.’ Tessa Hadley

‘Speaking for myself, as a reader, as a writer and as a human being, her work has touched and transformed my life. I hope that you might give it the opportunity to do the same to yours.’ Sally Rooney

‘In her finely drawn world, people are multidimensional, situations are often unpredictable, and nothing is ever as clear cut as we might hope it to be.’ Kat Lister, i

‘Ginzburg’s writing is so nimble and light . . . that it can slide quickly into darkness.’ Times Literary Supplement 

‘The letters . . . resemble a Greek chorus or vernacular commentary on events taking place just offstage . . . It’s the epistolary novel as conjuring trick, and Ginzburg handles it with aplomb.’ The Arts Desk