Francesca Giannone

What would happen if you finally met your soul mate - but they were married to someone els? HE SWEEPING INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER AND USA TODAY BESTSELLER'Ambition, forbidden love and great longing... A magnificent storyteller' Adriana Trigiani'[A] five-star read . . . If you love a family saga, sprinkled with historical fiction elements, and strong female protagonists, you need to read this book' theSkimmSalento, Italy, June 1934. A coach stops in the main square of Lizzanello, a tight-knit village where everyone knows each other. A couple gets off: The man, Carlo, a child of the South, is happy to be back home after a long time away; the woman, Anna his wife, is a stranger from the North. Carlo's brother is there to meet them, and he and everyone else can't help but notice that Anna is as beautiful as a Greek statue. But Anna is not like the other wives. She doesn't gossip or attend church. She reads books no one else has ever heard of. She even wears pants, just like a man, and thinks a woman should have rights just like a man. There aren't many options for a woman with Anna's sensibilities, so when she learns that the post office is hiring, she leaps at the opportunity. A female letter carrier? It is unthinkable. But Anna soon becomes the invisible thread connecting the town as she delivers letters between clandestine lovers, families waiting to hear news of loved ones away at war, even helping those who can't read. But for some in Lizzanello, letters come too little and too late. The seamstress, who was Carlo's first love, can't help but look at Anna as having taken her rightful place. Carlo's niece has put herself in a loveless marriage after an impetuous act of jealousy. And Carlo and his brother find themselves trying to cover up a recently unearthed surprise that could shatter all of their lives. 'Transportive, poignant, lush... Giannone brings the sun-soaked vineyards of southern Italy to life. At the beating heart of it all is Anna, the rule-breaking, big-hearted letter carrier' Juliet Grames'Weaving herself into the fabric of a southern Italian village during WWII, Anna challenges the status quo as the first female letter carrier in town' Barnes & Noble

Jižní Itálie, červen 1934. Na náměstí v Lizzanellu, městečku s několika tisíci obyvatel, přijíždí autobus, z něhož vystupuje místní rodák Carlo a spolu s ním i jeho manželka Anna a synek Roberto. Zatímco Carlo je nadšený, že se vrací domů, jeho manželka původem ze severní Itálie, má obavy, život na Jihu bude přece jen velmi odlišný od toho, který jako emancipovaná žena vedla na Severu. Pro místní je krásná „cizinka“ záhadou. Anna nechodí do kostela, nedodržuje místní nepsané zvyklosti, čte jednu knihu za druhou a mění zažité představy o životě ženy. A pak se jen rok po svém příjezdu přihlásí do výběrového řízení místního poštovního úřadu… Kniha zachycující třicet let života jedné neobyčejné a navýsost morální a laskavé ženy barvitě vykresluje italský Jih v polovině minulého století i to, jak některé, dnes zcela samozřejmé věci jako volební právo žen bylo těžké prosadit. A v neposlední řadě otvírá i otázku, jak jít dál, když člověk potká svou spřízněnou duši, ale oba už slíbili věrnost a lásku někomu jinému. Román Listonoška, oceněný prestižní Premio Bancarella, který se stal nejen v Itálii fenoménem, představuje jihoitalské městečko, jež by mohlo být jakýmkoli městečkem na světě – s muži a ženami, manželi a manželkami, otci a syny, matkami a dcerami, všemi, kteří se snaží žít na tomhle světě a zůstat přitom věrni svému srdci i sami sobě. Vychází v překladu Pavly Přívozníkové a Olgy Čaplyginové. Kniha vychází za laskavého přispění Centra pro literaturu a čtení italského Ministerstva kultury.

What would happen if you finally met your soul mate - but they were married to someone else? Salento, Italy, June 1934. A coach stops in the main square of Lizzanello, a tight-knit village where everyone knows each other. A couple gets off: The man, Carlo, a child of the South, is happy to be back home after a long time away; the woman, Anna his wife, is a stranger from the North. Carlo's brother is there to meet them, and he and everyone else can't help but notice that Anna is as beautiful as a Greek statue. But Anna is not like the other wives. She doesn't gossip or attend church. She reads books no one else has ever heard of. She even wears pants, just like a man, and thinks a woman should have rights just like a man. There aren't many options for a woman with Anna's sensibilities, so when she learns that the post office is hiring, she leaps at the opportunity. A female letter carrier? It is unthinkable. But Anna soon becomes the invisible thread connecting the town as she delivers letters between clandestine lovers, families waiting to hear news of loved ones away at war, even helping those who can't read. But for some in Lizzanello, letters come too little and too late. The seamstress, who was Carlo's first love, can't help but look at Anna as having taken her rightful place. Carlo's niece has put herself in a loveless marriage after an impetuous act of jealousy. And Carlo and his brother find themselves trying to cover up a recently unearthed surprise that could shatter all of their lives.