From the New York Timesâbestselling author of My Brilliant Friend, this novel of a deserted wifeâs descent into despairâand rageâis âa masterpieceâ (The Philadelphia Inquirer).
One of the New York Timesâs 100 Best Books of the 21st Century
The Days of Abandonment is the gripping story of an Italian womanâs experiences after being suddenly left by her husband after fifteen years of marriage. With two young children to care for, Olga finds it more and more difficult to do the things she used to: keep a spotless house, cook meals with creativity and passion, refrain from using obscenities. After running into her husband with his much-younger new lover in public, she cannot even refrain from assaulting him physically.
In a âraging, torrential voiceâ (The New York Times), Olga conveys her journey from denial to devastating emptinessâand when she finds herself literally trapped within the four walls of their high-rise apartment, she is forced to confront her ghosts, the potential loss of her own identity, and the possibility that life may never return to normal.
âQuick, furious, simultaneously steely and unhinged, and completely mesmerizing.â âThe New York Times
âIntelligent and darkly comic.â âPublishers Weekly
âRemarkable, lucid, austerely honest.â âThe New Yorker