The opening pages introduce us to a world straight out of gothic fable. In an isolated manor house by a forbiddingly dark forest, a strange-looking baby is born. This unearthly child, Lajos, is fated to carry forward the family name of the Lazars, a noble dynasty with an alarming tendency to go mad, die violently, or both.
Although these attractions are beautiful, the crowds they drew during my trip put a damper on the experience. I preferred sights like the Lagazuoi Tunnels, Monte Civetta, and Cinque Torri, all of which were less touristy but still had equally showstopping views and hikes.
Everything, no matter how broken or aged, is precious because of the people who touched it, used it, abandoned it. When the new owners plan to replace the carpet with an exact replica, Maximus laughs: the original, he tells us, is fifty per cent Gilbert DNA—and the scurf of fifteen beloved Labradors and one Miniature Schnauzer with dermatitis.
"Piano piano" is an old Italian saying that sounds nonsensical, but is actually full of wisdom, especially if you, like me, are finding yourself wishing away these frigid winter days and hoping spring and summer gets here fast. These days, I've found myself rushing from one thing to the next, frustrated at the smallest things, from post office lines to just missing my train. And I'm ready to make a change.
Ramos is a Barcelona-based staff photographer for Getty Images, with a career spanning news, international conflicts, and high-profile sports coverage-including the Winter Olympics. Ramos received an Award of Excellence in the Sports Photographer of the Year category for his full portfolio of sports coverage from 2023, including the World Athletic Championships, Tour de France, Alpine Ski World Cup Finals, surfing sessions in Portugal, and more.
Her writing tends to be classified as virkelighetslitteratur, or "reality fiction," and for good reason. Hjorth makes Norway sound like a small town-the sort of place where your neighbors know you're home if they can see your footsteps in the snow-and the overlap between her life and work has more than once been the literary version of tabloid news there.
My husband and I had two children and lost them both. Vincent, 16, enjoyed baking, while 19-year-old James was a brilliant linguist and a deep thinker. Shortly before Vincent's death, Li had written a memoir about her depressive episodes which led to her own suicide attempts.