The Almond Picker - by Simonetta Agnello Hornby (Paperback)

About the Book

Like many memorable works of fiction, this surprising mystery--and love story--set in rural Sicily hinges on a single question, in this case: who is Maria Rosalia Inzerillo, known as Mennulara, the almond picker?

Book Synopsis

The child of poor farmers, La Mennulara became a maid for a well-to-do local family when she was only a girl; by dint of hard work and intelligence, she became the indispensable administrator of the family's affairs. Still, she was a mere servant, and now (as this story begins) she is dead.

As the details unfold about this mysterious woman, The Almond Picker assumes the witty suspense of a thriller, the emotional power of a love story, and the evocative atmosphere of a historical novel. Set in Sicily in the 1960s, a violent, complicated society in the midst of tumultuous change, The Almond Picker is the story of a woman who negotiated for her freedom as no one else dared.

Review Quotes

"A classic Sicilian novel [in its] skeptical view of human goodness and a surprising tenderness for those on the lower, slippery rungs of the social ladder." --Los Angeles Times

"With impressive technical skill, first-time author Hornby introduces a raft of characters [and] a series of mysteries satisfyingly solved in a well-crafted narrative. . . . Surprisingly moving." --The Washington Post

"This is at heart a potboiler, but Alastair McEwen's translation preserves its dark and bitter Italian flavor." --Booklist

About the Author

Simonetta Agnello Hornby was born in Palermo, Italy. She finished her law studies in England, where she now lives and where she is a chairman of the Tribunal of Special Educational Needs. The Almond Picker is her first book.