A review by hollyway
The Story of the Lost Child by Elena Ferrante

emotional reflective

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Elena Greco is one of the greatest narrators of all time. Through her we experience the flow of the years, the environments in which she lives and of course the impeccably detailed, unforgettable characters who populate her life. But she is no passive wallflower, no mere observer. She lives, she feels, she acts. She is admirable yet contemptible, perceptive yet naive. While she is captivated by Lila - and certainly succeeds in justifying and transferring that captivation to the reader - I was constantly struck by the astounding complexity of Elena. Flawed and contradictory, but always with an internal logic, a consistency even to the contradictions so that I always understood her even when I hated her decisions or recoiled from her uglier thoughts (perhaps because some of that brutally honest self-reflection hit too close to home at times). Lila on the other hand is essentially the opposite, a true enigma who cannot be seen clearly even in the rare moments when she seems intent on making herself understood. This is just one aspect of the yin and yang of Lila and Lenu; the heart of what makes this series so compelling and what will - I'm sure - make future rereads so rewarding. These books and characters have a special place in my heart. I'm looking forward to rereading them someday, and in the meantime I will of course be reading everything else Elena Ferrante has ever written.