Goliarda Sapienza began the novel L'arte della gioia (the Art of Joy) in 1967 and finished it in 1976. The author managed to have only the first part published in 1994 by Stampa Alternativa: some other Italian publishers judged it too traditional, others too experimental and immoral. It was Angelo Pellegrino who had it published posthumously at his own expense in 1998 (22 years after it was written) and in a limited number of copies (about a thousand), again by Stampa Alternativa, which reprinted it in 2003 and then in 2006. Abroad, the text was translated into German (2005/2006) and French (2005), with public success; it was subsequently translated into several other languages, and in Italy it was published by Einaudi in 2008, 32 years after it was finished, and by Mondadori in 2009.

L’arte della gioia tells the story of Modesta, a woman of humble origins, but with a strong character, who crosses the history of the twentieth century with her human experiences.
In the first part of the novel Goliarda Sapienza describes the childhood of Modesta who lives in a very poor family in Sicily; after suffering terrible violence from her father and, following a fire, she loses her mother and disabled sister and she is then taken to a convent where she will be educated by the Mother Superior, Leonora. After the woman's death, Modesta is transferred, as per her will, to a noble family. Modesta will soon discover how to turn fate in her favor. Thanks to a marriage of convenience, she will therefore be able to become a noblewoman.

In the second part of the novel, Modesta moves to Catania to fully carry out her role as a princess and discovers love, but above all the desire to distinguish herself. She will enroll in the university and will begin to frequent the salons of the communists of the city.

The third part of the book is dedicated to Modesta's relationship with Joyce, a psychologist who suffers from depression and who will attempt suicide several times. Between the pages we see Modesta's family grow.

The fourth part of the novel tells of the years of fascism, the hardest ones. At the beginning of the Second World War, Modesta is arrested by the fascists. In detention (where she remains for five years), she bonds with an anarchist cellmate. Towards the end of the war Modesta suffers from hunger and falls ill with typhus. Her cellmate stays by her side and manages to save her. At home, Modesta is asked to run for deputy. Modesta collaborates with a newspaper. Having left politics and journalism, Modesta opens a small local bookshop. Her last years are dedicated to listening to the next generation and financing their travels and adventures.