I wasn’t sure what I would encounter in an Italian book about social media and influencers, but author Irene Graziosi does a superb job of shepherding the reader into a thoroughly modern and unexpected story. Twenty-something Maia dropped out of grad school in Paris and moved back to Milan with her much older professor boyfriend; her general indifference about the world gives her a morose quality that the reader doesn’t quite understand until we learn more about her past. While working at a sad local bar, she applies to work for a famous social media influencer despite her sharp contempt (“social media...is the death of the revolution,” & “a flock of accounts cheer on whoever seems the most morally intact.”). And so Maia starts working for 18-year-old Gloria, a straight-laced woman with millions of followers.

Maia and Gloria’s relationship to each other takes surprising turns and the novel experiments with themes of identity, consumption, and the way women have to navigate this contemporary world. Maia isn’t clear on what defines her any more, but Gloria may be able to help her see—and vice versa. The novel also teases out the curious generational gaps between its characters, as Maia and Gloria are less than ten years apart but Maia still tries to philosophize on why Gloria is the way she is (“perhaps... because she was born when the sun was already beginning to set on sub-cultures”). It’s a fascinating dichotomy, with plenty of swerves and biting writing that kept me rapt.

And you and me, we come with our own opinions about social media. This is a story about women and friendship and dark grief and coming-of-age but also: it’s a story about you, the reader. What is the role of social media in your life? How much do you let it define you? How much of what you put out here is true, or, as Maia believes... what you would like to be true?