TEHRAN — A new Persian translation of “Ties,” winner of the 2015 Bridge Prize for Best Novel by Italian Domenico Starnone, has arrived in Iranian bookstores.

Cheshmeh is the publisher of the book translated into Persian by Amir-Mehdi Haqiqat.

“Ties” is the story of a marriage. Like many marriages, this one has been subject to stress, to attrition, to the burden of routine. Yet he survived intact. Or so things appear. The rift in Vanda and Aldo’s marriage dates back years, but if you look closely enough, the cracks and flaws are evident.

Their marriage is a cracked vase that can shatter at the slightest touch. Or maybe it’s already broken and no one wants to acknowledge it.

Starnone’s thirteenth work of fiction is a powerful short novel about relationships, family, love, and the inevitable consequences of one’s actions.

Another Persian translation of “Ties” by Yalda Belarak was published in 2018 by Vara publishing house.

Known as an accomplished stylist and beloved as a talented storyteller, Starnone is the winner of Italy’s most prestigious literary prize, The Strega.

Born in 1943 in Saviano near Naples, Starnone is an Italian writer, screenwriter and journalist.

He worked for several satirical newspapers and magazines, including L’Unità, Il Manifesto, Tango and Cuore, usually on episodes of his life as a high school teacher. He also works as a screenwriter.

The films “La Scuola”, “The Ties”, both by Daniele Luchetti, “Auguri Professore” by Riccardo Milani and “Denti” by Gabriele Salvatores are based on his books.

One of his fiction books is ‘Via Gemito’, which won the Premio Strega in 2001. It was suggested in 2006 that the mysterious writer Elena Ferrante, author of ‘L’amore molesto’ and ‘I giorni dell’ abbandono”, is Starnone himself.

Starnone is married to Anita Raja, the literary translator who is believed to have authored “Elena Ferrante” in a 2016 report by Italian investigative journalist Claudio Gatti.

In 2017, an international research study compared the language of the mysterious novelist to 150 novels, revealing singular similarities with Starnone.

The same research team does not exclude that Ferrante’s novels are the fruit of the collaboration between Starnone and his wife Anita Raja.

Photo: cover of the Persian translation of the novel “Ties” by Domenico Starnone.

MMS/YAW