With sensitive prose and the flair of a great storyteller, Anna Pavignano delves into the most intimate folds of her protagonists, creating a powerful and vivid historical fresco inhabited by authentic, fragile, and extraordinarily human figures.

Alba, late 19th century. On a night shaken by thunder and lightning, little Camilla ventures out of her home in a desperate search for her parents and siblings. In the midst of the storm, a horse-drawn omnibus, running very late, runs her over. She survives, but the infection spreads and the doctors ask for consent to amputate her leg. Her mother objects, fearing that her daughter will become half a woman. Her father, on the other hand, chooses life above all else and authorizes the operation. Years later, Camilla has learned to endure the ignorance of the villagers and the weight of the nickname they have given her: the lame girl. During a party, relegated to the sidelines as wallpaper, she meets Felice, a medical student in Turin, gifted with sharp intelligence and a kind soul. He is the first to see the beauty and strength of the girl with the wooden leg. A passionate and stubborn love blossoms between the two, capable of defying convention and the mistrust of their families. Their story is destined to face difficult trials: for love, Felice gives up his studies and looks for work in the salt marshes of Aigues-Mortes, France, where Italian immigrants, unwelcome to the locals, are overwhelmed by the fury of violence.