Modena: an introduction

Every moment is a moment of judgement concerning certain moments that preceded it — Walter Benjamin

Modena is the last of the Télos trilogy, “a family saga in nine acts,” that follows the Piranesi from the Italian port town from which they took their name to Argentina, northern California, and Italy again. Franny, who traded one set of fascists for another, leads off. Jo and Lina follow, having joined Leo, Franny’s daughter, in Modena, all the strands of intermarriage and personal tics and desires in tow.