# What is Elsa Morante's Arturo's Island about?

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Section: Zestasy Wiki > Books & ideas · Updated: 2026-10-14 · Publisher: Zestasy

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Arturo's Island (L'isola di Arturo, 1957) is Elsa Morante's novel about a boy growing up almost wild on Procida, in the Bay of Naples, idolising an often-absent father. When his father brings home a young new wife, Arturo's world begins to change, and the book becomes a story about leaving childhood, and the island, behind. It won the Strega Prize in 1957.

Some novels are set in a place. *Arturo's Island* is practically made of one. Procida, the small island in the Bay of Naples, is not just the backdrop but the whole horizon of its young narrator's world, and reading it feels like a long, hot, slightly dangerous summer.

## The basics

Elsa Morante (1912-1985), born and died in Rome, published *L'isola di Arturo* with Einaudi in 1957, and it won that year's Strega Prize, [according to Treccani](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/elsa-morante/) and [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arturo%27s_Island). Isabel Quigly's English translation followed in 1959. It came between her first novel, *Menzogna e sortilegio* (1948), and her later, much larger *La Storia* (1974).

## What it is about

Arturo grows up in a gloomy old house on Procida. His mother died giving birth to him, and he idolises both her memory and his father, who is away more often than not. Left largely to himself, he roams the island and builds a private mythology in which his father is a heroic figure.

Then his father returns with a new bride, Nunziatella, barely two years older than Arturo. Her arrival unsettles everything: Arturo's feelings, his picture of his father, his sense of who he is. Over the course of the novel the boy's admiration and certainty are slowly tested by what he learns, until leaving the island becomes inevitable.

That is as far as we will go. The pleasure of the book is in how Arturo discovers things, and it is best to discover them with him.

## Why people love it

- **The island.** Procida is evoked with such intensity that many readers want to go there afterwards. The island also holds a prison, which casts a shadow over the sunlit setting.
- **The boy.** Arturo's fierce certainties and private myths are the engine of the book, and watching them meet reality is both funny and painful.
- **The theme.** It is one of the great Italian coming-of-age novels, a story about growing up by losing illusions; if you like the form, see [what a bildungsroman is](https://zestasy.com/wiki/what-is-a-bildungsroman/).

It is lyrical and emotional rather than plot-driven, so give it unhurried time. It is ideal for a summer by the sea, especially in the south of Italy; we include more ideas in [novels set in Italy for summer](https://zestasy.com/books/novels-set-in-italy-for-summer/).

## Where to start with Morante

*Arturo's Island* is the obvious door: focused on one boy and one island, and the novel that won her the Strega. If it wins you over, *History* (*La Storia*, 1974) is the big later novel to try next. *Menzogna e sortilegio* (1948) was her first novel, and *Aracoeli* (1982) her last.

Read *Arturo's Island* first, ideally with the sea somewhere in view.

## Book and film

Damiano Damiani adapted the novel for the cinema in 1962, and the film won Best Film at the San Sebastián International Film Festival, according to the Wikipedia entry. As usual, read the book first: so much of it happens inside Arturo's head.

## FAQ

### Is Procida a real place you can visit?
Yes. It is one of the islands in the Bay of Naples, and reading the novel there is a very particular pleasure. Check ferry times locally before you plan a day around it.

### Is Arturo's Island a children's book?
No. It has a young narrator, but it is an adult novel about desire, disillusion and growing up, with themes that suit older teenagers and adults.

### Which English translation should I read?
Isabel Quigly's 1959 version was the first in English. If you find more than one translation in the shop, read the first page of each and choose the voice you prefer.

### What is the Strega Prize?
It is one of Italy's major literary awards; Natalia Ginzburg's *Family Lexicon* won it too, in 1963. See [our page on the Strega Prize](https://zestasy.com/wiki/strega-prize/).

## Sources

- [Treccani: Elsa Morante](https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/elsa-morante/)
- [Wikipedia: Arturo's Island](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arturo%27s_Island)
- [Lex.dk: Natalia Ginzburg](https://lex.dk/Natalia_Ginzburg)

## Related

- [What is the Strega Prize?](https://zestasy.com/wiki/strega-prize/)
- [What novels set in Italy are best for a summer holiday?](https://zestasy.com/books/novels-set-in-italy-for-summer/)
- [What is a bildungsroman?](https://zestasy.com/wiki/what-is-a-bildungsroman/)
- [What is Natalia Ginzburg's Family Lexicon about?](https://zestasy.com/books/natalia-ginzburg-family-lexicon/)
- [Is The Leopard by Lampedusa worth reading?](https://zestasy.com/books/is-the-leopard-worth-reading/)
- [All Books & ideas answers in the Wiki](https://zestasy.com/wiki/#books)