The Lying Life of Adults

By: Elena Ferrante, Ann Goldstein - translator

Narrated by: Marisa Tomei

Soon to be a NETFLIX Original Series.

A POWERFUL NEW NOVEL set in a divided Naples by ELENA FERRANTE, the New York Times best-selling author of My Brilliant Friend and The Lost Daughter.

“There’s no doubt [the publication of The Lying Life of Adults] will be the literary event of the year.”—Elle

Giovanna’s pretty face is changing, turning ugly, at least so her father thinks. Giovanna, he says, looks more like her Aunt Vittoria every day. But can it be true? Is she really changing? Is she turning into Aunt Vittoria, a woman she hardly knows but whom her mother and father clearly despise? Surely there is a mirror somewhere in which she can see herself as she truly is.

Giovanna is searching for her reflection in two kindred cities that fear and detest one another: a Naples of the heights, which assumes a mask of refinement, and a Naples of the depths, a place of excess and vulgarity. She moves between both in search of the truth, but neither city seems to offer answers or escape.

Named one of 2016’s most influential people by TIME Magazine and frequently touted as a future Nobel Prize-winner, Elena Ferrante has become one of the world’s most read and beloved writers. With this novel about the transition from childhood to adolescence to adulthood, Ferrante proves once again that she deserves her many accolades. In The Lying Life of Adults, listeners will discover another gripping, highly addictive, and totally unforgettable Neapolitan story.


A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF 2020
The New York Times Book Review ・ Vogue ・ Entertainment Weekly ・ ELLE Magazine ・ BuzzFeed ・ The Millions ・ The Seattle Times ・ USA Today ・ Town & Country ・ Thrillist ・ Publishers Weekly ・ Library Journal ・ Harper's Bazaar ・ BookPage ・ Literary Hub ・ BBC Culture

Totally absorbing, great narrator

I listened to this in a day. I'd forgotten how absorbing the worlds Ferrante creates are. Plus, Marisa Tomei's narration is exceptionally good.

Marisa Tomei goes full-on My Cousin Vinny

I am one of the millions who was enthralled, nay possessed, by Elena Ferrante’s Neapolitan novels, read to perfection by the hypnotic Hillary Huber. My disappointment in The Lying Life of Adults may therefore be attributed to Marisa Tomei’s awful, exaggerated delivery, which completely overwhelms the language of the novel and reduces it to utter puerility. I forced myself to finish only because I wanted to learn how it all turned out. Save yourself the torture and read the print version instead.

Timeo Elena et dona Ferrante

Con profondo rispetto per Marisa Tomei, che offre una lettura raffinata, mi sono ritrovata a desiderare la consegna stagionata di Hillary Huber che ora è impressa nella mia psiche come alter ego in lingua inglese di Elena Ferrante. Questo libro è un altro viaggio straordinario attraverso la palla di fuoco del trauma dell'ingresso di una ragazza nell'adolescenza, questa volta in una famiglia tipicamente borghese napoletana. Intrecciata nella magia narrativa ormai familiare e abilmente discreta di Elena Ferrante, c'è una nuova voce non testata. Un'angoscia sconosciuta e un'alienazione generazionalmente nuova, più enigmatica, hanno condito l'ultimo romanzo di Ferrante. Rivisita le lotte femminili, fisiche, sociali, sessuali, politiche ed emotive, con colpi di scena inaspettati, come il limone in salsa di salmone mediterraneo, di teologia, religione e ... sì, gioielli. Eppure lascia anche il lettore più fedele sia affamato di più sia un po 'di vergogna di quella fame, essendo insoddisfatto della fine delicatamente violenta di questo piccolo libro abilmente, intenzionalmente goffo ma coinvolgente e allettante.

With deep respect for Marisa Tomei, who offers a refined reading, I found myself longing for the seasoned delivery of Hillary Huber who is now etched in my psyche as Elena Ferrante's English language alter ego. This book is another extraordinary journey through the fireball of trauma of a child’s entry into adolescence, this time in a distinctively middle-class Neapolitan family. Woven into Elena Ferrante's now familiar and skilfully discreet narrative magic, there is a new untested voice. An unknown anguish and a generationally new, more enigmatic, alienation have spiced the latest novel by Ferrante. She revisits the female, physical, social, sexual, political and emotional struggles, with unexpected twists, like the lemon in a Mediterranean salmon sauce, of theology, religion and ... yes, jewelery. Yet it leaves even the most faithful reader both hungry for more and a little ashamed of that hunger, being dissatisfied with the delicately violent end of this cleverly, intentionally clunky but engaging and enticing little book.

Live Elena & Marisa!

Elena Ferrante is the most Brilliant writer alive today, and this is the perfect combination for her book— having Marissa Tomei as narrator. This is yet another gorgeous book in her collection and I can’t pick a favorite because they’re all so excellent. I wish Marisa Tomei had narrated all of her books because I do find it difficult to listen to the other books with Hillary Huber. Tomei beautifully captures the Italian element of these stories.

Lame

As much as I enjoyed reading previous Elena Ferrante books I really looked forward to this one. I was disappointed. She said this, then he said that, then I felt this, and then she said that, and then he said this.
I didn't think it would ever end. There's very little actual action. I wasn't as bothered by Marisa Tomei's performance as some listeners. But I'm not a great fan either. There is certainly some elegant writing, and acute observations of the inner workings of a precocious adolescent.
But I breathed a sigh of relief when I was finally finished.