Rights sold to Germany (C. Bertelsmann)
Italian language rights reserved
The title of this books which combines autobiography with philosophical reflections (following in the footsteps of Marzano’s magnificent earlier book, Légère comme un papillon), comes from a verse of Emily Dickinson’s: That Love is all there is, is all we know of Love. This demonstrates the simplicity and complexity of attempting to define love, through its presence and its absence.
From the search for Prince Charming (an unreachable ideal) to an acceptance of the human limitations of love, from childhood desire to endless analyses of the absence of love that sometimes informs our shaky emotional lives, from motherhood to narcissism, Michela Marzano forms her own concept which reflects our universal experience: “We are still alone with our fears. Alone with another list, and it too is endless, full of unanswered questions. This time it’s different. Because even if I lose everything, I won’t lose myself. Nor the will to start over. Nor the conviction that never again will anyone take away who I am, even if afterwards I’m destroyed by the darkness.”
Born in Rome in 1970, Michela Marzano is a professor of philosophy at Paris-Descartes and has been a deputy in the Italian parliament since February 2013. She is a brilliant essayist, the author amongst others of Extension du domaine de la manipulation (Grasset, 2008), Le contrat de défiance (Grasset, 2012), and the autobiographical narrative, Légère comme un papillon (Grasset, 2012), which achieved very good sales in France.
Partant de sa propre vie autant que de ses lectures, l’auteur évoque la recherche du Prince Charmant – un objectif qui se révèle inaccessible –, le désir d’enfant, la maternité, l’absence d’amour qui fonde parfois nos bancales existences, l’acceptation des limites de cet amour. Tournant un regard compréhensif pour chacun mais souvent impitoyable envers elle-même, elle aboutit à un constat personnel, où se reflète toute expérience humaine : « On reste seule avec ses peurs. Seule avec une autre liste, elle aussi sans fin, pleine de questions sans réponses. Cette fois, c’est différent. Car même si je perds tout, je ne me perdrai pas moi-même. Ni cette envie de recommencer. Ni la certitude que personne ne peut plus me voler qui je suis, même si, ensuite, la nuit m’anéantit. »