Extremely elusive anonymous author (and queen of our hearts) Elena Ferrante recently gave a very rare interview to the Financial Times. After getting over the initial OMG-it’s-Ferrante squee, we were properly blown away by her answers. Here’s our very favourite bits from the interview:

When she refused to beat around the bush and outright declared her distrust of men:

When she turned a question about “positive male characters” into a moment to reflect on the hazards of living as a woman today:

When she added a whole new level to Lila’s dissolving boundaries:

When she expertly dismantled the false grand narrative that surrounds motherhood:

When she very convincingly called bullshit on the Ferrante-as-Lena theory:

When she conjured up this image of her literally in a little corner, writing life-changing, earth-shattering fiction:

Read the full interview here

Find Ferrante’s books here