My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante
Published: 2012
Genre: Fiction
My Rating: didn't finish
When I Tried to Read It: October 2025
My Review
I really, really, really wanted to like this book, mostly because it's not anything that I would usually read, and TikTok has been raving about it. I gave up about 15% into the book after trying so, so hard to stick it out, and I plan on going back to find any recommendations on TikTok so that I can block those creators.
I believe the book follows 2 women from childhood through adulthood from the perspective of one of the women. Although it would have been nice to hear how their lives turned out, I don't think that I'm able to invest in stories about children. The beginning of the book really dragged on for me because I really couldn't careless.
The plus side is that this book was turned into an HBO series, so I can just go find out what actually happens between the 2 of them! I'll report back on how that goes.
Plot Summary
Beginning in the 1950s in a poor but vibrant neighborhood on the outskirts of Naples, Elena Ferrante’s four-volume story spans almost sixty years, as its main characters, the fiery and unforgettable Lila and the bookish narrator, Elena, become women, wives, mothers, and leaders, all the while maintaining a complex and at times conflicted friendship. This first novel in the series follows Lila and Elena from their fateful meeting as ten-year-olds through their school years and adolescence.
Through the lives of these two women, Ferrante tells the story of a neighborhood, a city, and a country as it is transformed in ways that, in turn, also transform the relationship between two women.