This series infuriates me.

I hate all the characters and the plot is outrageous. But I can’t deny that this is *literature*. I want to scream at all the characters, but they are 100% a product of their circumstances. Our protagonist is the most frustrating because she is one of the few people to become educated and get the opportunity to leave the neighbourhood, but is ignorant to understanding what drives the people around her. Elena will only ever see herself as poor and because of her formative childhood experiences with Lila, does not recognize how how much better off she is than her friends. She is the only person with the real ability to leave the neighbourhood of her own volition, but fails to recognize her self-worth.

This theme is further reinforced through Nino’s character, who despite also being educated, is an idiot. In contrast to Elena, Nino is well aware of his self-worth, but is incredibly selfish and heavily influenced by his own ego. He takes no ownership over any of his actions and is happy to discard his relationships when they no longer benefit him.

What is the most difficult for me to grasp is Elena and Lila’s friendship. There is obviously a strong connection between these two women, but I’m not 100% sure what makes them friends. It’s clear they are drawn to one another, but it’s a relationship heavily influenced by competition. I want to believe that these are two dear friends, for whom jealousy eats away at their bond over time. But I’ve never seen any strong roots between these two characters. There was a brief period of simplicity between them as children, when they had the common ground of both being victims of their upbringing, but that bond didn’t seem strong enough to me to withstand all the trials they’ve put their friendship through.

For me, Lila is an inflammatory character. I know this is intentional, but the jealousy and competition between these two characters is so prevalent that it’s hard to believe the two could still tolerate to be around one another. After Ischia, there is an extended period of distance between them. For me it begs the question of when the meaningful and moving part of their friendship will be showcased?

But damn, this series is well written. I love a good unlikeable character and you cannot deny that Ferrante is a genius at distilling relationships. This does read like classic literature to me in that, it’s at times boring, it can feel extraneous and overwritten, and yet, even the most mundane of interactions serves to provide depth and nuance to a complicated cast of characters. The characterization is central to the themes of the novel, and yet the plot is still engaging and critical to the story. It’s a blend of these two essential elements of literature. It makes me want to beat my head against the wall at the ignorance and stupidity of the characters, but they are so well crafted that you can’t help to step back and reflect on what makes these people react the way them do.

I kind of hate it, but I can’t stop thinking about it. I definitely need a break from this series, but of course that ending has me wondering what more chaos and heartache Nino is going to bring to the story in the next volume. Most of all, I hope to see some real threads of friendship and selflessness between Elena and Lila. And I hope that Elena will finally start to recognize her own self-worth.