Otranto

One of Italy's leading writers recounts the sack of Otranto by the Turks in 1480. Like the film "Rashomon" or Robert Browning's "The Ring and the Book," this novel relates the events in overlapping tales told by survivors and victims. As "Otranto" weaves its web of memories, it also focuses on the beauty of everyday life: the essence of place - the fragrance of oleander, the feel of new linen and old wood, the sky, sea and wind, lovers and friends. Corti's style is riveting, her eye for detail compelling.