Francesca Marciano Boeken

From the author of the acclaimed story collection The Other Language comes a fresh collection of six colorful, richly realized stories told with inimitable humor, exactitude, and heart. Centering us in Rome, but transporting us seamlessly into worlds as varied and exotic as they are emotionally real, these stories paint landscapes that are populated--vividly, hauntingly--by animals: from squawking, violent seagulls, to magical snakes, to a tiny dog on the side of a deserted road, to starlings circling the evening sky in exhilarating formation. In the foreground, in unforgettable, cinematic frames, events unfold, especially in the lives of women: an affair ends painfully at a dinner table; an actress's past comes crashing down on her during an audition; an unhappy wife seeks but can't quite find respite in a historic palazzo sublet; two couples imagine parenthood in the home of a woman named for the Greek goddess Hera; a young girl returns from drug rehab and sets out anew, with a traveling circus; a man in crisis draws his ex-girlfriend deep into the New Mexico desert. Each story tells of deeply human moments of realization and recognition, instants of irrevocable change, and, for the fortunate, of unexpected clarity.

This collection features six vibrant stories that showcase the author's signature blend of humor, precision, and emotional depth. Each tale offers a unique perspective, inviting readers into a world filled with colorful characters and intricate narratives. The author's acclaimed storytelling skills are on full display, promising an engaging and heartfelt reading experience.

A mesmerizing novel of love and nostalgia set in the vast spaces of contemporary East Africa. Romantic, often resonantly ironic, moving and wise, Rules of the Wild transports us to a landscape of unsurpassed beauty even as it gives us a sharp-eyed portrait of a closely knit tribe of cultural outsiders: the expatriates living in Kenya today. Challenged by race, by class, and by a longing for home, here are "safari boys" and samaritans, reporters bent on their own fame, travelers who care deeply about elephants but not at all about the people of Africa. They all know each other. They meet at dinner parties, they sleep with each other, they argue about politics and the best way to negotiate their existence in a place where they don't really belong. At the center is Esmé, a beautiful young woman of dazzling ironies and introspections, who tells us her story in a voice both passionate and self-deprecating. Against a paradoxical backdrop of limitless physical freedom and escalating civil unrest, Esmé struggles to make sense of her own place in Africa and of her feelings for the two men there whom she loves—Adam, a second-generation Kenyan who is the first to show her the wonders of her adopted land, and Hunter, a British journalist sickened by its horrors. Rules of the Wild evokes the worlds of Isak Dinesen, Beryl Markham, and Ernest Hemingway. It explores unforgettably our infinite desire for a perfect elsewhere, for love and a place to call home. It is an astonishing literary debut.

A crumbling farmhouse in Puglia, Casa Rossa was bought by Alina Strada’s grandfather at a time when no one else wanted it. Now busy preparing it for sale, Alina endeavors to recover the memories it still harbors—in particular of three women whose passions indelibly shaped her family’s dark past. There’s grandmother Renee, whose love of novelty won over everything else. Alina’s mother, Alba, whose marriage to a screenwriter inspired both great art and unbearable sadness. Finally Isabella, Alina’s sister, whose fervent politics drove her to ever-escalating betrayals. Moving from Jazz Age Paris to 1950s Rome to modern-day New York, but returning always to the uncompromising beauty of Italy’s south, Casa Rossa is a spellbinding story of how loves and losses, secrets and lies, resonate across the generations.

Maria Galante and Imo Glass are on assignment in Afghanistan: outgoing Imo to interview girls who have attempted suicide to avoid forced marriage to older men; and shy, perfectionist Maria to photograph them. But in a culture in which women shroud their faces and suicide is a grave taboo, to photograph these women puts everyone in danger. Before the assignment is over, Maria is forced to decide if it's more important to succeed at her work —and please Imo—or to follow her own moral compass. The End of Manners is a story of friendship and loyalty, of the transformative power of journeying outside oneself into the wider world.

Zwei Frauen, unterschiedlicher könnten sie kaum sein: die zurückhaltende Maria Galante aus Rom, gefangen in einer Lebenskrise, und die extrovertierte Imogen Glass aus London. Ein gefährlicher Auftrag führt sie nach Afghanistan, wo sie zwangsverheiratete Frauen in abgelegenen Dörfern porträtieren sollen. Ihr Weg führt durch ein zerrissenes Land, das Militärs, Söldnern und Waffenhändlern ausgeliefert scheint. Vor ihrem Abflug muss Maria ein 'Überlebenstraining in feindlicher Umgebung' absolvieren. Gemeinsam mit anderen internationalen Teilnehmern lernt sie in Nordengland, wie man sich in Krisensituationen verhält. Der abschließende Test bringt sie an ihre Grenzen. In Kabul treffen Maria und Imogen zunächst nur auf Westler: Militärs, Söldner und arrogante Experten. Mit Hilfe von Hanif, einem einheimischen Journalisten, gelangen sie schließlich in ein abgelegenes Bergdorf. Dort begegnen sie jungen Frauen, die aus ökonomischen Gründen in Zwangsverheiratung gedrängt wurden. Die kulturellen Barrieren zwischen Einheimischen und westlichen Besuchern scheinen unüberwindbar. Doch Maria erfährt, dass Nähe oft dann entsteht, wenn man sie nicht erwartet. Ein einfühlsam und fesselnd erzählter Roman über eine fremde Kultur und die Schwierigkeiten, sie zu verstehen. Großartig recherchiert und berührend.

Příběh mladé ženy, která v horkém srdci Afriky nalézá nový život. Hlavní hrdinka, mladá Italka Esmé, dcera známého básníka, žijící v nonkonformním světě bohémského otce, se po jeho smrti odhodlá k radikální změně. Odjíždí do africké Keni, aby zde našla samu sebe. Okouzlena exotickou krásou africké přírody, jednoduchým a přitom plným životem, se rozhodne zůstat. Prožívá romantický milostný vztah s místním lovcem a pomalu se odpoutává od minulosti. Nečekaně však podlehne fascinujícímu a charismatickému válečnému zpravodaji, který jí ukáže jinou podobu Afriky - svět krutosti, chudoby a beznaděje. Esmé poznává, že sama před sebou neunikne a že se musí rozhodnout.

Definita dal “New York Times” una “narratrice nata”, l’acclamata autrice di Cielo scoperto raccoglie qui nove racconti incandescenti, eleganti, spesso commoventi, che esplorano il potere del cambiamento, sia nelle relazioni, che nella geografia, attraverso culture diverse, per rivelarci aspetti di noi stessi che non conoscevamo. Dalla Laguna di Venezia durante il Festival del cinema, dove una donna decide di comprare un abito di Chanel che non può assolutamente permettersi, a un piccolo villaggio greco bruciato dal sole nel pieno delle vacanze estive, dove un’adolescente subisce lo shock del primo amore; poi ancora, in una comunità di danzatrici nel sud dell’India, il matrimonio apparentemente solido di una coppia si dissolve in poche ore. Questi racconti straordinari narrano personaggi che si trovano nel pieno di una trasformazione, che oltrepassano confini, attratti da nuove passioni e nuovi destini. Illuminato dallo sguardo limpido di Francesca Marciano, ricco di svolte sorprendenti, di incontri fortuiti, di riflessioni originali, Isola grande isola piccola ci parla della gioia che c’è nella riscoperta di noi stessi e dell’ironia contenuta in ogni atto di re-invenzione.

Désespérée par la mort de son père, célèbre poète italien, Esmé s'envole vers le Kenya. Au contact de ce pays mystérieux, elle décide de ne plus retourner à Rome et tombe amoureuse d'Adam, organisateur de safaris, qui la fascine. C'est à Nairobi qu'Esmé apprend les règles de la vie africaine. Non pas celles des autochtones, mais celle d'une caste de Blancs expatriés dans une atmosphère d'alcool, de drogue et de sexe. Il y a Nicole, l'amie, avec qui Esmé partage confidences et cocaïne, Linda, beauté du Middle West, Nena, mère et épouse parfaite, et surtout Iris, "dompteuse" de fauves et d'hommes. Loin des taudis de Nairobi, Esmé découvre les courses folles en 4X4, les longues promenades, le mystère d'une nature sauvage. Jusqu'au jour où tout bascule et tous les repères si durement retrouvés sont balayés par la rencontre d'un nouveau venu...