A thing about me is that I will pick up any Italian translated book if it is compared to Elena Ferrante *shrug* This one did good at fitting the bill though. The tone of the writing, the vibe of the story, and the cast of characters did remind me a bit of Ferrante's masterpieces, though of course not quite as good (but what is?)

It's a short but emotional book, about a teacher in an Italian village who disappears into the woods after one of her students dies and she fears she is partly to blame. The story is about loss, resilience, and being an educator. I thought the author's note at the end of the book was discussing how she used some of her family's history as a jumping off point for this book really interesting and compelling. A good novella if you are interested in recently published Italian translation.

I don’t think I was the right person for this book. A teacher runs off into the forest after a child in her classroom commits suicide. I was expecting a quiet, introspective novel that drew on human connection, emotions, and relationships. While it’s certainly quiet (and to a point introspective), there are so many characters that get page time (in a short, under 300 page novel), that I feel we didn’t get the depth and emotion or connection we could have if it was more focused. However, I could see others loving this historical fiction novel that takes place in a small Italian town.

I thought the "blurb" sounded fantastic! The book is translated from Italian to English and as I often find with translations, I ended up being disappointed. I don't think the intent and the emotion make the translation well. Although I have no personal reason for this, the beginning felt triggering. The middle was interesting enough to keep me going, the end fell flat, felt rushed, almost seemed to end abruptly. I really wanted to love this, I really thought I would love this, and maybe because of that, I feel deeply disappointed that I didn't.

Kudos to both author and translator for bringing us such a tautly drawn portrayal of the human tragedies that play out every day in small villages, and back streets every day. I was completely captivated by the humanity in each character.

I received an advance release copy from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Silvia, a teacher in an Italian village school, has been tutoring Giovanna, one of her students, when Giovanna jumps from a window in her home into the river and drowns. Having called Giovanna’s mother shortly before the suicide to ask her to go easy on her daughter, who had been skipping class, Silvia vanishes. What was already the suicide death of an elementary school girl now becomes an even bigger story when a teacher goes missing.

Readers know more than Silvia’s closest relative, her cousin Anselmo. They know more than Giovanna’s best friend, Anselmo’s daughter. They know more than the other teachers in the school, such as Sister Annangela. Only the local newspaper seller saw Silvia the day of her disappearance when she stopped to buy a paper on her way to school—the morning paper reporting Giovanna’s suicide the previous afternoon.
As Silvia hides out in the forest with nothing but the clothes she was wearing the morning that she failed to show up for class, she spends her time imagining visitors such as Giovanna and wondering if she, herself, may be dead since she can see the dead. As Silvia recalls her past, readers gradually come to know her.

Then asthmatic Martino appears, stumbling upon her hiding place after coming up with a scheme that he thinks might get him out of this place where he has been sent for the clean air but where he is also bullied. He longs to return to Turin and to his friends there. A ten-year-old like dead Giovanna, Martino is from a different class at school, not one of Silvia’s students although she recognizes him. Silvia makes him promise not to mention her or tell anyone her whereabouts.

Sightings are reported. Her cousin Anselmo and his family believe she is alive and are determined to find her. Some people, including Martino’s mother, are convinced she is dead--another suicide. How does Martino weigh his promise to Silvia against his scheme to get back to Turin and his urge to reveal the truth to the community, especially to her relatives?

Based on a real event, Maddelena Vaglio Tanet’s Dear Teacher is an engaging first novel that brings to life small town Northern Italy, the area’s varied inhabitants, and the surrounding almost magical forest that brings Martino and Silvia together.

Readers should not miss Vaglio Tanet’s Author’s Note in which she describes the distant relative’s story that inspired the book, her research to learn more about the event, and the ways in which the novel deviates from historical fact.

Thanks to NetGalley and HarperVia for an advance reader egalley.

This is a dreamy, meditative, yet deeply emotional story about a teacher who disappears into the woods after one of her students dies. Set in the 1970s in a small village in Italy, a middle-school teacher named Sylvia runs away from her life because she feels somehow responsible for her student's death. Another student, Martino, finds her but doesn't immediately tell anyone, and the book follows all the characters as they process and react to Sylvia's disappearance.

I'm not totally sure what this book was trying to say, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. Put broadly, this story is about trauma: many of the characters lived through World War II and experienced various losses and horrors, and every family has secrets and tragedies in their situation. This isn't a mystery or thriller - you know early on where Sylvia goes and why, and the circumstances of the student's death are "revealed" pretty much right away. So this book is much more about how all the characters react to such a tragedy and how they make sense of Sylvia's disappearance. The book is a little slow, but it doesn't feel dragged out, and the pace allows us to linger with several characters' perspectives. I'm realizing as I write this review that I don't know how memorable this book will be for me, but I enjoyed it!

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Via for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review!

This was such a poignant read, I found myself drawn into the loss that is felt throughout the book. It is definitely one that will stay with me for a long time.

While this is a story about Silvia and Martino, it really should be mentioned that a CHILD commits suicide. Woah.

Silvia is a caring and devoted teacher, so when her student dies, she is consumed with grief. This grief drives her to walk away from everything, just walking into the woods, never to return.

When a new student finds Silvia, all the truths of Silivia's life and traumas are explored and this student might be the one to bring her out of her grief.

--
It's hard to review a book that's based on the author's own life, but this was depressing with a capitol D. YIKES.

It's beautifully written, but it is a heavy story that many readers find off-putting.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I have to admit, I was expecting something entirely different because of the description. I had a really hard time getting into the story and following what was happening… Maybe because I’m trying to read this later at night and I’m tired? I don’t know, this is not my kind of a story. They probably should be a trigger warning at the beginning of this book also because the abuse was quite vivid.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author, and publisher, for an advance, reading copy, and exchange for my honest opinion.

Dear Teacher (formerly Untold Lessons, translated by Jill Foulston) is a slim but haunting novel inspired by real events. It was nominated for the Premio Strega, Italy’s prestigious literary prize. it's a really heavy read but i pulled through.

the story centers on Giovanna, an 11-year-old girl living in Biella, Italy, who suffers abuse at home and bullying due to her precocious development. struggling with this torment, she begins skipping school. when her teacher Sylvia calls home out of concern, the consequences escalate, leading to tragedy. Giovanna’s body is later found downstream in a river, leaving her teacher and community grappling with guilt, grief, and loss. check TG because there are themes of abuse, cruelty, guilt, love, and compassion are explored within this unsettling, mournful narrative. the prose is earthy, honest, and vividly atmospheric, capturing both the beauty and sadness of the story.

one quote i took from the book:
“Her stomach was twisting with hunger, the backs of her shoes had rubbed her heels, and even her face hurt because she hadn’t stopped clenching her teeth and jaw the entire time… She wasn’t afraid of the woods, though. She’d grown up during a time when they were used like fields and pastures.”

this is a powerful and evocative novel, both heartbreaking and mesmerizing.

This was a DNF for me. It wasn’t what I expected and I had trouble getting into the story. I’m hoping to come back and try again after reading more interesting title.

…”Dear Teacher” is based loosely on real-life events — events that happened to the author’s grandfather’s cousin and a student.
…We learn upfront (not a spoiler), a student, Giovanna has died.
…”Dear Teacher” …. from last years title “Untold Lessons” (translated by Jill Foulston), was nominated for Italy’s prestigious literary prize. the *Premio Strega*.

Giovanna was a student in year six. Her family had moved to Biella, Italy, a few years before.
[note: I’ve not been to Biella and enjoyed reading more about the city in northern Italy from our friend Google].
With low school marks - her father left marks on Giovanna — bruises that lasted for weeks.
Her mother began to turn on Giovanna too. She thought her daughter was too precocious. By age eleven her breasts were larger than most girls her age. Her mother didn’t like that either— thought they were bad luck.
Giovanna couldn’t stand people talking about her body.
Who could?

Giovanna was skipping school pretty regularly. Her teacher, Sylvia was concerned about the consequences (parental abuse) she would cause Giovanna by calling her mother.
But Sylvia did call. She tried to play the ‘skipping-school’ down by saying she was just worried about her.
Ha— well that didn’t work out too smoothly.
Giovanna’s Mother tossed around nasty words at her daughter then threatened to tell her father.
Giovanna says,
“If you tell him, I’ll kill myself”.
“Her mother shook her head. She didn’t believe it for an instant”.

Giovanna’s body was found three kilometers downstream from the river.

Given this is such a slim novel, I’m being careful not to say much more.
We learn about Giovanna’s teacher who felt such horrible guilt -
Family life is examined.
Other students and characters in this small Italian village are also affected.
Themes of abuse, pain, bullying, grief, guilt, loss, suicide, compassion, family, tragedy and cruelty….
…love is explored, also.
But this is a sad haunting story.

The atmosphere is unnerving.
The writing has ‘feelings’ — earthy- honest- straight forward -its own body of language.
I thought the prose was beautiful.

Excerpts (non-spoilers) . . .

“Her stomach was twisting with hunger, the backs of her shoes had rubbed her heels, and even her face hurt because she hadn’t stopped clenching her teeth and jaw the entire time. She couldn’t go down to her village, nor could she turn around: the hazy memory of her house and the people she knew terrified her”.
“She wasn’t afraid of the woods, though. She’d grown up during a time when they were used like fields and pastures. She’s been going there with her cousin from the time she was a girl, at night too, to look for mushrooms. They’d gone out alone in the dark, pitch-black, climbing at the shortest, steepest road behind a clutch of houses clinging to the hill”.

“The city was sleeping under a creamy mist . . . “

This was a mournful-powerful-mesmerizing compassionately written novel.