Chiara Maci makes her debut in fiction with «Quelle Due»: a delicate and intense journey into the mother/daughter relationship

There is a moment in life when, to move forward, you have to go back. This is what happens to Adele, the protagonist of " Quelle due" , the first novel by Chiara Maci , also known as @chiarainpentola , a much-loved face in the kitchen and on TV, who reveals herself in the new guise of a narrator of souls, feelings and memories. The book, published by Mondadori, represents one of the most intense narrative debuts of the season, and the author is coming to Puglia for three presentations over the weekend. Today, in fact, she will be in Altamura at the Antica Tipografia Portoghese (7 pm); tomorrow, Saturday 28, in Ostuni, in the spaces of Masseria Valentina in Contrada Molillo for the preview of the review Un'Emozione Chiamata Libro; Sunday 29 in Nardò in Piazza Pio XI as part of the Salento Book Festival.

«Quelle due» delves into the theme of single parenthood, and while drawing on Chiara's personal experience, it leaves room for the creation of lively, credible, close characters: «It's a freedom that I wanted to take - the author tells the Gazzetta - it comes with age and experience: there are periods in which you are convinced that you will do everything you are told, then you become more confident and can allow yourself some personal luxuries, as it was for me to take entire days locked in a hotel to give life to the character of Adele».

From food and wine communicator to debut in fiction: what triggered this need?

"It must be said that I am always writing. First a diary, from which my blog was born, then cookbooks, but I knew that something else would also be born, even if I didn't imagine a novel, I thought I wasn't capable of it. I waited for the right moment, first I elaborated part of my story, but I wanted to transform it into something different and strong, to be close to the many women who write me emails and messages telling me about their situations, their loneliness, even as a couple, it's not always about single parenthood. And then I didn't want to talk about myself, but to embrace these women with words that I felt were mine. From here the character of Adele was born, it wasn't easy because I've always been close to reality, but then I got the hang of it and managed to invent. The character also becomes an instrument, you can put ideas, thoughts in her mouth...

The relationship with those who follow it is very close. What feedback is coming from the book?

"They are the most beautiful thing. I was afraid of being judged, because this book is a piece of my heart that I am fond of, I was afraid of possible criticism. And instead the reception, so far, has been wonderful. Even in meetings and presentations I always have people in front of me who are moved, who want to share their stories. A lady came up to me crying desperately and confessed to me: "Sooner or later I will learn to go to a restaurant to eat alone". I understood that reading it had been therapeutic".

It is a work that speaks to multiple generations, there is also the figure of grandmother Ada, central to the story. Is it inspired by a real person?

"No, it's totally invented. I have a very strong grandmother, my mother's mother, who supports the family, but instead I wanted to imagine Ada. Also the character of Costanza, the friend of my youth, is a beautiful figure in the book, but I don't have a person who represents a reference for me in that way. In the end Adele needs it because her legs aren't enough for her to stand up."

It's true that it's not a cookbook, but there's a lot of talk about food in the pages, as a way to talk about the family...

"I can't tell a story without putting food in the middle, it's part of a person's life and history. I'm talking about tomato juice, which is the glue of a family, the excuse to keep the members together, food is never just a list of ingredients, but much more. Then my father is from Salento, my mother from Bologna, I grew up in Campania, not only have I eaten very well all my life, but I have learned the value of the table, and in the book that tomato juice unites and divides. Again, when Mia, Adele's teenage daughter, leaves the breakfast eggs half-cooked, it is always a metaphor for a broken soul, in half. I liked giving a connotation to foods."

The title «Quelle due» recalls the idea of ​​an almost inseparable mother/daughter union. As a writer but also as a parent, how do you feel the evolution of this bond, which inevitably changes shape after a few years?

"In the end, the message of the book is precisely this: learning to let go. The union, especially in the Italian family, is strong, fundamental, sometimes it almost becomes possession. Yet the great maturity of the parent lies in understanding that the story of the child is not his own story, he must learn to take a step back and observe him as he takes his own path. You have to work a lot on yourself, but you can get there with awareness."

Would you like your daughter Bianca, who is now 11 years old, to read the book one day?

"Yes. But as a good mother I leave it there, when she wants she will read it, without forcing it. However she came to the presentations, now it is familiar to her. Even my little son would like to read it, he is a great book lover. But, in fact, he is still little."

They say that every book is a journey, and when the journey ends you come back different. How do you feel changed?

"It was a cathartic, therapeutic journey, a personal evolution. Writing about Adele I learned a lot about myself too, I started writing about other people and I thought: "But I'm like that too". A necessary comparison, and I'm sure I wrote it at the right time".