LA PENOMBRA CHE ABBIAMO ATTRAVERSATO | 1964 | LALLA ROMANO

La penombra che abbiamo attraversato is a reflective, semi-autobiographical novel in which Lalla Romano returns to her childhood home in the Piedmont countryside, particularly the village of Ponte Stura. Through memories, small evocations, and atmospheric descriptions she reconstructs the world of her early life: the landscape, family relationships, the rhythms of rural existence, the presence (and eventual loss) of her mother. The narrative does not follow a strict chronology, but rather moves through vivid impressions—smells, sights, fragments of dialogue, the texture of objects. Themes of memory, loss, identity, and the contrast between permanence and change are central. The book explores how the past continues to live in the present, coloring perception and shaping one’s sense of self. Romano’s style is delicate, introspective, rich in sensory detail, yet restrained and free from sentimental excess.