Maria Grazia Calandrone's autobiographical novel 'Dove non mi hai portata' finalist at Strega Prize

Maria Grazia Calandrone's autobiographical novel 'Dove non mi hai portata' (Einaudi, 2022) is a finalist for the 2023 Strega Prize. The book reconstructs the life of her biological mother, Lucia Galante, who committed suicide in the Tiber River in Rome in 1965, leaving eight-month-old Maria Grazia on a lawn near Villa Borghese. Calandrone combines poetic writing with journalistic investigation, analyzing police reports, letters, and photographs to understand her mother's story. The book also explores the role of her adoptive mother, Ione, and addresses themes of poverty, migration, gender oppression, and the condition of women in 1960s Italy. Calandrone emphasizes that the story is political, representing millions of women. The novel is part of a diptych following 'Splendi come vita' (2021), dedicated to her adoptive mother. Calandrone is a poet, writer, and playwright, considered one of the most intense voices in contemporary Italian poetry.