In 1930s Italy, there are two rules for women: 1. Respect and swear to protect “the duce,” Mussolini; and 2. Be a good girl and follow the rules. This is the context in which 12-year-olds Maddalena and Francesca grow up in the small city of Monza.
Maddalena, also known as “The Cursed One,” defies both of these rules. She forges her own path, sets her own rules, and frequently bears the consequences. “I’m not afraid of anything,” she frequently reminds us, whether it’s stealing cherries from the grocery store or standing up to fascism in class.
The title of Salvioni’s novel in Italian is La Malnata which roughly translates as someone who was “born wrong”, a term commonly used in 1930s Monza. Adults feared this fearless young girl because they believed she was cursed and would harm anyone who crossed her path. Maddalena was believed to be a witch capable of “marking you with the scent of death.” This perception stemmed from the belief that she was responsible for the death of her four-year-old brother, who fell from their apartment window.
Francesca, on the other hand, is a “good girl” from a middle-class family who obeys her parents, does not play in the mud by the river like Maddalena and her small gang of three, and does not question the Fascist salute in the morning. It’s no surprise that Francesca is captivated by the scruffy girl with dark eyes that glinted like a cat—she was everything Francesca wasn’t. The two girls soon form an unbreakable bond that even death cannot sever.
“She smelled like river water, and a pale scar ran from under her nose to the bow of her upper lip.”
It’s with this death of the town’s most influential Fascist’s son that The Cursed Friend begins. “It’s hard to get a dead body off yours”, says Francesca, the narrator of the story. From this shocking event, she takes us back to the beginning of their friendship and the events that led them to the banks of the Lambro River and the boy’s lifeless body.
If the two girls’ friendship during their formative years reminds you of anything, you’re not alone. There is a strong resemblance to Lenu and Lila from Elena Ferrante’s Neapolitan Quartet. Even though Ferrante’s novels take place two decades later, there are parallels. Both novels depict sexism, misogyny, and an inherently patriarchal society. Similarly, Salvioni illustrates how society, particularly men, transforms and shapes women against their desires.
All around them, the relationship between sex and power is evident. Whether it’s Francesca’s mother’s flirtatious behaviour with Roberto Colombo, a man with high-ranking connections, or Colombo’s son’s treatment of Maddalena’s sister, Donatella, when she becomes pregnant. Women are viewed as commodities to be used and discarded once they have served their purpose.
“Who would believe a disheveled girl, belly swelling with a baby that hadn’t been put there by her husband? A woman of ill repute who wouldn’t know truth if it hit her in the face?”
My Cursed Friend is a beautifully raw and unsettling depiction of friendship, the perils of growing up and the loss of innocence in a conservative and patriarchal society.
Afrikaans readers with access to Netwerk24 can also read my newspaper review of Salvioni’s novel here: https://www.netwerk24.com/netwerk24/kunste/boeke/bondel-dinamiet-vra-vir-nog-meer-20240519