A young married couple hires a middle-aged widow during the wife, Nora’s, difficult pregnancy; they don’t realize the dominating force she will become in their small family. Signora A—maid, nanny, and confidante—becomes the glue in their household, and over time, the steady and loving presence whose benign influence allows them to negotiate the complexities of married life. The delicate fabric of the young family comes undone when Signora A is diagnosed with lung cancer. When she becomes too sick to work, both husband and wife feel the strain of her absence.
This not a simple love story; it’s a story about love in its many forms, and how a capacity for love can give meaning to any existence, no matter how ordinary.
Download and start listening now!
“Combining the edginess of modern life with the touching theme of losing someone who has become just like family, [this book] confirms Giordano as a writer who understands the complexities of human relationships.”
— Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Beautifully crafted…its themes are universal and it will appeal to anyone who treasures the gifts of others.”
— Library Journal (starred review)“Bring[s] into focus the questions of what makes a family and whether love can ease the pain of separation.”
— BookPage“Giordano muses gorgeously on our inability to blend our life essences; even love leaves us lonely. A lovely remembrance played in a minor key.”
— Kirkus ReviewBe the first to write a review about this audiobook!
Paolo Giordano is the author of the critically acclaimed The Human Body and the international bestseller The Solitude of Prime Numbers, which has been translated into more than forty languages. He is the youngest winner ever of Italy’s prestigious literary award the Premio Strega. Giordano has a PhD in particle physics and is now a full-time writer. He lives in Italy.
Chris Andrew Ciulla, an Earphones Award–winning narrator with over 350 credits, is an on-screen actor, voice actor, host, boxing analyst, and radio personality. He has performed characters for the popular video game series Fallout and Mafia, and can be heard frequently voicing commercial campaigns. A versatile performer with over twenty-five years of experience, he produces original audio content under his own production banner, Leonardo Audio.