Chicago. What do we leave behind when we leave somebody? A home, a family, the past, an idea of the future, our worst image burned in the eyes of those we loved. We spend our lives breaking vases and then gluing them back together, deluding ourselves into thinking we are good as new. We try not look too far back, because the time to draw up budgets is a waste, ridiculous, and heartbreaking. This is the thread throughout "Ties", the English translation of the book "Lacci" by Domenico Starnone that will be presented to the Italian Institute of Culture in Chicago on September 19th. Translated by Jhumpa Lahiri, Pulitzer Prize winner, "Ties" is a compelling, easily legible, and provocative novel about marriage and family. The event is organised in collaboration with the European Book Club in Chicago. (9Colonne)