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A review by wmbogart
The Dry Heart by Natalia Ginzburg
Even in a narrative that involves murder and infidelity, Ginzburg’s writing is very direct. It has a matter-of-fact, unadorned quality to it.
The novella’s structure is interesting; it begins with the murder, then provides a kind of (non-)justification for it retroactively. But in filling in the backstory, Ginzburg takes a realist approach largely devoid of embellishment or hysteria. This is a relationship founded on obsession rather than love; the clear incompatibility is treated plainly because, despite the end result, the discord in the relationship is not particularly unique. It is a bleak, unsparing novella because it is written without affect.
The novella’s structure is interesting; it begins with the murder, then provides a kind of (non-)justification for it retroactively. But in filling in the backstory, Ginzburg takes a realist approach largely devoid of embellishment or hysteria. This is a relationship founded on obsession rather than love; the clear incompatibility is treated plainly because, despite the end result, the discord in the relationship is not particularly unique. It is a bleak, unsparing novella because it is written without affect.