DigiCat Publishing presents to you this special edition of "Under the Shadow of Etna: Sicilian Stories from the Italian of Giovanni Verga" by Giovanni Verga. DigiCat Publishing considers every written word to be a legacy of humankind. Every DigiCat book has been carefully reproduced for republishing in a new modern format. The books are available in print, as well as ebooks. DigiCat hopes you will treat this work with the acknowledgment and passion it deserves as a classic of world literature.

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The House by the Medlar Tree is a realist work concerning Sicilian life and the dangers of economic and social turmoil. The story focuses on the hardworking and happy Malavoglia family that borrows money from a local lender against unreceived cargo, they wish to resell. When it is lost at sea, the family attempts everything in their power to repay the debt. Several setbacks follow as the family faces trouble from every quarter. Whatever dreams the family formulated over three generations, they witness them destroyed and struggle to make ends meet. This story of the family of fishermen is set in Aci Trezza, a small Sicilian village near Catania, where life revolves around constant gossip about honor, money, and marriage. The novel maintains a choral element and portrays characters that are united by the same culture but divided by ancient feuds. The tone is kept light through the irony with which the author depicts the characters and their peculiarities. The story is a remarkable portrayal of the life of an unlucky family in a Sicilian village and is full of sorrow, loss, warmth, and redemption.