One Great Lie

April 1, 2021
Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* Charlotte wins a scholarship to a summer writing program in Venice run by her favorite novelist, the magnetic and brilliant Luca Bruni. She will even be staying at his villa on La Calamita, a private island that once sheltered plague victims. Charlotte also hopes to investigate her Venetian ancestor, Isabella di Angelo, a forgotten Renaissance writer whose book of poetry includes "In Guerra," the world-famous poem by Antonio Tassi. Family legend claims that Isabella was Antonio's lover, and that he published her poem as his own. But with Charlotte's dream comes a dark sense of foreboding she cannot shake. Venice is stunning and learning from Luca is everything she dreamed, but La Calamita feels haunted and Charlotte's fellow students are older. Even as Charlotte meets and falls in love with a young conservation student who helps her search for Isabella, she becomes increasingly uncomfortable with Luca's over-familiarity. When he crosses the line, it shatters Charlotte's faith in herself and her talent. Printz Honoree Caletti (A Heart in a Body in the World, 2018) leads her readers through intertwined stories of sexual harassment and misogyny with assurance and a fierce feminism, all while steeping her prose in sensory detail that creates an atmosphere of mystery. In a stunning finale, amid the floodwaters of the acqua alta, Charlotte finds Isabella's truth and, most importantly, the inspiration to persevere.

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April 15, 2021
Budding writer Charlotte Hodges has a dream: "to say something that says something." She gets the chance when she spends the summer under the guidance of her idol on his private island in the Venetian Lagoon. Luca Bruni is a kindred spirit: His semiautobiographical writing speaks directly to 18-year-old Charlotte's personal pain. At first, Bruni is charming and brilliant--as Charlotte always expected. Reality creeps in as his true nature slowly emerges: He's a middle-aged, arrogant snob hiding serial lechery behind a mask of empty, performative feminism while preying on the young women who attend his sought-after summer program. Charlotte's dreams crumble when this powerful man who can make or break a writing career sets his sights on her. Third-person-present narration foreshadows the dreadful events to come, giving the story a fairy-tale tone and inspiring readers to absorb every luminous detail as the narrative slows down to describe Venice in gorgeous, flowing prose. Each chapter is prefaced with information about a female poet from the Italian Renaissance who, despite her accomplishments, has been forgotten or is only remembered for her connection to a man. In a subplot, Charlotte investigates one such woman, an ancestor who may have penned a famous poem claimed by her lover as his own. Readers won't miss the parallels between this woman's life and what is happening to Charlotte in the present. Most characters are assumed White. A potent story of how one young woman finds the power to write her own story. (Fiction. 14-18)

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Starred review from April 19, 2021
Writing is white high school senior Charlotte’s great love, so receiving a scholarship to a summer writing program run by her favorite author, Luca Bruni, is a dream come true. Its location in Venice is another draw: Charlotte’s ancestor, a poet now known only as a paramour of Renaissance poet Tasso, lived there, and Charlotte wants to know more about her. When she arrives, the workshop is equal parts writing heaven and peer competition. Charlotte, who’s a “polite, anxious sort,” has a writer’s strong observational skills—part of her knows that Luca is inappropriate and invasive; the other part wonders when he’ll notice her. Caletti (Girl, Unframed) links past and present via the through line of men taking advantage of women: confining them to convents, stealing their work, and generally abusing power structures. The incisive and sharply written, place-laden book balances its contemporary #MeToo narrative with Charlotte’s passionate investigation of Renaissance Venice gender politics, and though it’s clear from the start that Luca’s “words will shatter you, but so might he,” watching Charlotte connect past and present while searching for some measure of justice is empowering. Chapter heads reference female Renaissance poets remembered in connection with men. Ages 14–up. Agent: Michael Bourret, Dystel, Goderich & Bourret.