Discussed in this essay:

My Brilliant Friend, by Elena Ferrante. Europa Editions. 336 pages. $17.

The Story of a New Name, by Elena Ferrante. Europa Editions. 480 pages. $18.

Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay, by Elena Ferrante. Europa Editions. 400 pages. $18.

Little is known about the writer Elena Ferrante. It’s assumed the name is pseudonymous, but only her Italian publisher could say for sure. From Fragments, a short collection of letters and written answers to readers’ questions, published in 2012, we…