The Art of Joy (L'arte della gioia) is an monumental historical Italian novel by Goliarda Sapienza. Written over a nine-year period the novel was finished in 1976 but was rejected by Italian publishers because of its length (of 540 pages) and its portrayal of a woman unrestrained by conventional morality and traditional feminine roles. It detailed a woman’s pursuit of cultural, financial and sexual independence in early-20th-century Sicily, during which she sleeps with both men and women, commits incest and murders a nun. It was only published after Sapienza’s death with the success of its French, German and Spanish editions earning Sapienza comparisons to D.H. Lawrence and Stendhal.
Sebbene sia stato scritto più tardi rispetto all'ambientazione resta un libro di 50 anni fa, e offre spunti sull'affettività, sessualità, rapporti e analisi politiche di una modernità spiazzante. Alcuni passaggi sono sembrati onestamente troppo lunghi.
