When I was visiting Genoa, Italy, I popped into Feltrinelli Librerie and picked up a book with an intriguing and original plot: The Imaginary Life of a Laurel Tree by Mario Fortunato.
Our unnamed narrator, a writer in his forties, visits his sister in Calabria, where she is hosting a party with old friends. He reconnects with her friend, the captivating Federica who he remembers from high school. She relates to the group about a scandal at the school where she works. A thirteen-year-old Tunisian boy has accused his forty-five-year-old professor of sexual assault, but Federica believes the accusation is false.
Our narrator becomes obsessed with the case, imagining what the young boy is thinking and feeling in various scenarios. At the same time, he reflects on his own relationships and sexuality, including his involvement with a twenty-three-year-old Spaniard. As he revisits both past and present experiences, questions about desire, identity and power become increasingly complicated.
Throughout the novel, Fortunato draws comparisons to Ovid’s Metamorphoses, specifically the story of Daphne, who transforms into a laurel tree to escape Apollo’s unwanted pursuit. That connection adds another layer to a novel concerned with obsession, desire and power dynamics. Like Daphne, Fortunato’s characters become caught between who they are, and the identities others impose upon them.
I found this to be a thought-provoking and subtle novel. It made me think about how easily desire can become obsession—and how the truth can get distorted when we try to tell someone else’s story. Readers looking for literary fiction that is unconventional, and quietly unsettling may find much to appreciate here.