Cenizas

by Grazia Deledda

"Cenizas" by Grazia Deledda is a novel published in 1903-1904. In the Sardinian countryside, fifteen-year-old Rosalia falls for Anania, a dreamer who turns out to be married. When her father discovers her pregnancy, he casts her out. Years later, she leaves her young son at his father's door and disappears. The boy grows up with opportunities for education and love, but his illegitimate birth haunts him. As he searches for his mother to restore her honor, he risks losing everything he's built.