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The Lost Father
Shortlisted for the 1988 Booker Prize and winner of the Macmillan Silver Pen Award, this novel tells the story of a family and is set in the south of the Italian peninsula, during the early part of this century. The author's other work includes "Monuments and Maidens" and "The Skating Party".
277 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1988
About the author
Marina Warner
183 books357 followersMarina Sarah Warner is a British novelist, short story writer, historian and mythographer. She is known for her many non-fiction books relating to feminism and myth.
She is a professor in the Department of Literature, Film and Theatre at the University of Essex, and gave the Reith Lectures on the BBC in 1994 on the theme of 'Managing Monsters: Six Myths of Our Time.'
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
July 20, 2025
An intriguing, imaginative, clever novel about the Pittagora family through three generations, beginning in 1909 and ending in 1985. Davide, the father of the title, is a lawyer. Anna, living in New York in 1985, using her mother’s reminiscences and her grandfather’s diary, is trying to write a family history. The novel begins with details of Davide and his sisters’ life with their Southern Italian parents. Around 1912, Davide is involved in a duel. The precise details of the duel become difficult to establish. It is during the 1930s when there is a mass emigration from Italy due to very poor living conditions, that the Pittagora family think about living in New York, USA.
A very interesting novel about a family’s life style changing, influenced by different cultures, time periods and individuals within the family.
A slow, memorable read.
This book was shortlisted for the 1988 Booker Prize.
A very interesting novel about a family’s life style changing, influenced by different cultures, time periods and individuals within the family.
A slow, memorable read.
This book was shortlisted for the 1988 Booker Prize.
March 25, 2018
Marina Warner is an Oxford-trained historian who describes herself as "novelist and mythographer". Her novels interweave two dominant movements of the twentieth century: postcolonialism and feminism.
THE LOST FATHER (1988) largely takes place in the South of Italy in the early decades of the twentieth century. One of the most interesting aspects of this novel is the description of the malign influence on the country of Benito Mussolini, the dictator. Focusing on the fictional region of "Ninfania", it bears witness to the gradual destruction of a way of life, the erosion of principles of behaviour and the subversion of shared values. Thus, Davide Pittagora, the central character and paternal figure who belongs to the old ways, is not only "lost" in a literal sense, because his early death leaves his family bereft and vulnerable, but is also "lost" in the sense that he has become uprooted as he watches the ruins of his culture and tries desperately to find some meaning.
THE LOST FATHER asks us to consider what it means to be noble in a time of crisis. It is a comprehensive account of patriarchy, fascism and the nature of cultural identity, however, the story does not offer any closure, which is not a bad thing in itself.
This novel is not an easy read because the plot moves constantly between various pasts and the present. I found that the picture of life in southern Italy, in the poor and traditional "Ninfania", was very well rendered, however, the presentation of the narrator's present life in England and her sojourn in the US was banal and superficial and thus spoiled the story for me, hence the three stars rating.
THE LOST FATHER (1988) largely takes place in the South of Italy in the early decades of the twentieth century. One of the most interesting aspects of this novel is the description of the malign influence on the country of Benito Mussolini, the dictator. Focusing on the fictional region of "Ninfania", it bears witness to the gradual destruction of a way of life, the erosion of principles of behaviour and the subversion of shared values. Thus, Davide Pittagora, the central character and paternal figure who belongs to the old ways, is not only "lost" in a literal sense, because his early death leaves his family bereft and vulnerable, but is also "lost" in the sense that he has become uprooted as he watches the ruins of his culture and tries desperately to find some meaning.
THE LOST FATHER asks us to consider what it means to be noble in a time of crisis. It is a comprehensive account of patriarchy, fascism and the nature of cultural identity, however, the story does not offer any closure, which is not a bad thing in itself.
This novel is not an easy read because the plot moves constantly between various pasts and the present. I found that the picture of life in southern Italy, in the poor and traditional "Ninfania", was very well rendered, however, the presentation of the narrator's present life in England and her sojourn in the US was banal and superficial and thus spoiled the story for me, hence the three stars rating.
May 22, 2025
a multigenerational saga about an italian(-american/-british) family throughout the 20th-century. beautiful prose and there is so much love in its pages...
if you want to read 3000 more words of my opinions about this novel: https://carolinemao.mataroa.blog/blog/lost-father/
if you want to read 3000 more words of my opinions about this novel: https://carolinemao.mataroa.blog/blog/lost-father/
May 26, 2019
Among her many accomplishments, Marina Warner, daughter of an English father and Italian mother, is listed on Wikipedia firstly as a mythographer. It is those elements that largely determine the style and content of this impressive, at least partly autobiographical novel.
Narrator Anna, who catalogues scraps of ephemera for a struggling London museum (akin perhaps to the novelist’s trade), is writing a history of her Italian family, centred around the legend that her grandfather Davide was injured in a duel, the effects of which finally killed him 20 years later.
She imagines him growing up near Riba (anagram Bari) with his sisters, their transatlantic voyage – vividly described in its appalling detail - to America, and return after misfortune to their homeland now ruled by Mussolini.
The story is fascinating up to that point, drawing upon traditions, nature and folklore, most vividly around the time of Davide’s death when friends help his wife to die all clothing into mourning black even as he lies dying. And after the wide-angle shot, the detail - his razor lying with shavings buried in streaks of soap.
Anna’s writing style is rich in vocabulary, imaginative in description, and if the precisely articulated language spills into the thoughts and speech of her characters, particularly those of Davide’s young sisters, it is best assumed to be the narrator’s own version rather than how they actually might have expressed themselves.
The most fascinating of these girls is the sensual Rosa, but would she really, aged 11, discovering her femininity, really describe her vagina as “it feels like persimmons in there, when they are perfect to eat”?
The second half of the novel skirts around the family’s relationship with the fascist regime, which might not have been as straight-forward as expected, but falls rather flat after the death of Davide, descending into more quotidien details of family life.
There is an interlude that includes a highly improbably flirtation at the Disneyesque ‘Fun City’ – a shallow contrast to the depth of family tradition – before a return to the central issue of how Davide really suffered his injury. The circumstances are left open to doubt, but are shown in a new light by Anna’s mother. Which begs the question why she did not interrogate her more thoroughly in the first place.
Narrator Anna, who catalogues scraps of ephemera for a struggling London museum (akin perhaps to the novelist’s trade), is writing a history of her Italian family, centred around the legend that her grandfather Davide was injured in a duel, the effects of which finally killed him 20 years later.
She imagines him growing up near Riba (anagram Bari) with his sisters, their transatlantic voyage – vividly described in its appalling detail - to America, and return after misfortune to their homeland now ruled by Mussolini.
The story is fascinating up to that point, drawing upon traditions, nature and folklore, most vividly around the time of Davide’s death when friends help his wife to die all clothing into mourning black even as he lies dying. And after the wide-angle shot, the detail - his razor lying with shavings buried in streaks of soap.
Anna’s writing style is rich in vocabulary, imaginative in description, and if the precisely articulated language spills into the thoughts and speech of her characters, particularly those of Davide’s young sisters, it is best assumed to be the narrator’s own version rather than how they actually might have expressed themselves.
The most fascinating of these girls is the sensual Rosa, but would she really, aged 11, discovering her femininity, really describe her vagina as “it feels like persimmons in there, when they are perfect to eat”?
The second half of the novel skirts around the family’s relationship with the fascist regime, which might not have been as straight-forward as expected, but falls rather flat after the death of Davide, descending into more quotidien details of family life.
There is an interlude that includes a highly improbably flirtation at the Disneyesque ‘Fun City’ – a shallow contrast to the depth of family tradition – before a return to the central issue of how Davide really suffered his injury. The circumstances are left open to doubt, but are shown in a new light by Anna’s mother. Which begs the question why she did not interrogate her more thoroughly in the first place.
October 12, 2020
An Italian family saga but hardly a memoir; an account of wives, daughters & nieces of Davide Pittagora on the Adriatic coast of southern Italy, spanning three generations. The narrative is full of dramatic moments & provocative characters & perfectly captures the turmoil & tribulations of life in early 20th century Italy...with a supporting period in America, regarded as an escape & an opportunity for impoverished immigrants. The writing is complex & challenging, as Marina Warner fully embraces the non-linear narratives with lashings of Italian popular culture, customs & superstitions & folklore. The female voices are the strongest ones & give this 1988 novel a real feel for the suffering of women in a superficially patriarchical society. The reality is far less clear-cut...as it is the women who maintain the family through the hardest of times.
September 20, 2018
The low rating denotes my tastes rather than the quality of this novel. I probably misread the blurb, or expected something from the author because of her background in a certain field.
The story starts slowly, interestingly in the second person. Set in Italy, the prose evokes sultry Italian summers.
The chapters shift in time, each headed up with a date, but this is an example of the reader not always taking in everything on the page. A few times part-way into the chapter, I had to go back to the header to see where we were in the scheme of things.
The story starts slowly, interestingly in the second person. Set in Italy, the prose evokes sultry Italian summers.
The chapters shift in time, each headed up with a date, but this is an example of the reader not always taking in everything on the page. A few times part-way into the chapter, I had to go back to the header to see where we were in the scheme of things.
September 25, 2026
This is the story of Pittagora family.
Anna Collouthar is a 38 year old single mother who lives in London.
The narrative is her attempt in the 1980s to reconstruct the story of her family and the mysterious death of her grandfather Davide Pittagora.
But with so many conflicting family stories Anna has her work cut out for her trying to sift through the truth to write an honest and faithful memoir of early 20th century Italy.
Being honest I found this quite dull and hard going, but then noticed the Booker prize shortlist nominee and realised why!
Anna Collouthar is a 38 year old single mother who lives in London.
The narrative is her attempt in the 1980s to reconstruct the story of her family and the mysterious death of her grandfather Davide Pittagora.
But with so many conflicting family stories Anna has her work cut out for her trying to sift through the truth to write an honest and faithful memoir of early 20th century Italy.
Being honest I found this quite dull and hard going, but then noticed the Booker prize shortlist nominee and realised why!
July 29, 2023
Set on the Aegean-facing east Italian coast, this intergenerational family folk tale jumps across generations. We get an unreliable narrator writing from the London of 1985 between cut-aways to sexual awakenings, feast days, Fascism-oppressed domestic retreats and migrations. It was that enjoyable mix of the unfamiliar (new place, different times) and recognisable (accurate renderings of emotions and instincts).
It lingers as a book that questions how much truth matters to families bent upon myth-making and origin stories. The book was subtle and wasn't exactly a page turner, but then neither was I unhappy to pick it up each time. It was in this respect tepid but subtly flavoured, as a book that grows with distance. It would merit a re-read and despite the three stars, I would recommend.
It lingers as a book that questions how much truth matters to families bent upon myth-making and origin stories. The book was subtle and wasn't exactly a page turner, but then neither was I unhappy to pick it up each time. It was in this respect tepid but subtly flavoured, as a book that grows with distance. It would merit a re-read and despite the three stars, I would recommend.
February 24, 2017
For some of the book I felt that I was transported to another time and culture, however I found that I couldn't really get to know the characters enough and that it was often too heavy-handed in both it's style and plot.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews