Elena Varvello
Elena Varvello was born in Turin. After completing a Masters Degree in Creative Writing she published two collections of poetry, Perseveranza è salutare (2002) and Atlanti (2004). The short story collection L’economia delle cose (2007), nominated for the prestigious Premio Strega, won the Premio Settembrini and the Premio Bagutta Opera Prima. A short film of the same title has been based on the short story La pistola.
Her first novel, La luce perfetta del giorno, was published by Fandango in January 2011. In May 2016, her second novel, La vita felice, was published by Einaudi to critical acclaim. It has been sold for translation into several languages, including English. The UK edition, Can You Hear Me?, received an English PEN Award and was selected as Waterstones Thriller of the Month in June 2018. Her latest novel, Solo un ragazzo, was published by Einaudi in September 2020.
Elena teaches Creative Writing at the Scuola Holden in Turin. She lives with her husband and two children in a small village in the woods, not far from her birthplace.
Photo © Federico Botta
