“Everything in the world was in precarious balance, pure risk, and those who didn’t agree to take the risk wasted away in a corner, without getting to know life.”

— Elena Ferrante, The Story of a New Name

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A prolific Italian writer, the pseudonymous author structures her books around the female experience in relationships and life. Some of Ferrante’s books that amassed her impressive following include My Brilliant Friend, The Days of Abandonment, and Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay.

Ferrante, despite her cult-like success and her fans’ respect of her desire to keep her identity private, was recently in the news for being doxxed by a male Italian journalist. Ferrante’s exposure has been widely criticized, and the general consensus is that this treatment of Ferrante was unnecessary and unfair. It’s unknown if Ferrante will keep writing novels, since she has previously released a statement that she would cease to do so if her identity was ever discovered, but that doesn’t take away from the incredible voice and narratives that she has already given readers.