Somewhere Near Grosseto

Marina Stepnova is the author of the widely acclaimed novel “The Women of Lazarus” (the “Big Book” prize, the shortlist for the “Russian Booker,” “Yasnaya Polyana,” and “National Bestseller” awards), as well as the novels “The Surgeon” and “Atheist Lane.” Her prose has been translated into twenty-three languages.

Her new book, “Somewhere Under Grosseto,” is a collection of stories about people who aren’t usually noticed— and it seems they themselves do everything to stay invisible. In truth, their “small tragedies” and “great hopes” conceal strong feelings: love, pain, loneliness, fear of death, and joy of life. Everything that makes us human.