A review by betweenbookends
Happiness, as Such by Natalia Ginzburg

4.0

This slim novella opens with the disappearance of the son of this family, Michele, who has escaped to England after being involved in some political troubles in Italy. Most of the novel is epistolary following the letters from different family members punctuated with sections of narration. This is a very clever technique, as you get to see incidents from multiple perspectives and how different people interpret them. One of the highlights for me was Ginzburg's sharp, dry wit that really cuts to the bone. These are unlikeable people and their letters and actions are filled with their various contradictions and misled hopes. However, there's always that faint glimmer of warmth beneath the vitriol they spew on one another. This is a very fine book, scathing, unapologetic, and witty.