“She is so surprised to see her mother leaning over her that she forgets to cry.” We are certainly witnessing a narrative experiment. A successful idea, but one that we weren’t ready for at the beginning of the novel, and in fact, we read the first five pages twice. Written almost entirely in the second person singular, the book immediately conveys a sense of alienation, as if the narrator wanted to simultaneously care for the...
On the occasion of Starnone’s new book, now available in all bookstores, I thought it appropriate to recall the novel of hers that has moved me most in recent years: Laces. A book that for me was much more than a simple reading experience: rather, I found myself walking through the four desolate walls of a family that I immediately felt inhabited the same room as me, and emerging a little unsteady, angry and at...
“FRIDAY RE-VERSO” “Why did the seasons continue to follow one another for me, while for him time has stopped forever in that May?” In our minds, as we close the book with a closed throat, mortified by a memory that is now ours too, the echo of the literature professor’s voice when he explained to us the greatness of Primo Levi’s writing: he added nothing, because there was nothing to add. The title itself is an...
“FRIDAY RE-VERSO” “Then I burst into tears. Then one always bursts into tears, I thought.” Telling life by talking about death: this is what Aglaja Veteranyi does for one hundred and twenty-nine poignant, poetic pages. The life of circus performers has always had a contradictory charm that combines the freedom of wandering with the lability of relationships; a life made of magic tricks and escapes, amazements and disappearances. Different rules, a twirling in space and time...
“FRIDAY RE-VERSO” “Today I’m going to be tough (and I’m crying while writing these lines).” Wandering through the shelves of bookstores these days you will find the latest reprint of the literary debut of Édouard Louis. A student of Didier Eribon, to whom the work is dedicated, he follows in his footsteps with the impulsive unscrupulousness that comes from being a few years younger than his master. Being able to do so, we read this...
“In front of the fascist house he cleared his throat, picked up the saliva in his mouth and spat on the ground.” Italy post armistice of September 8th, brothers against brothers, native homeland, a land of contention by foreign feet, and raped by innocent deaths. The action takes place entirely in the Comacchio Valleys, where History – with a capital H – during the Second World War collides and overwhelms the history – with a...
“People think one thing is true to the core.” Can an American novel excite and involve an Italian reader after more than sixty years? If it’s a masterpiece, yes! A modern classic of world literature. Get ready to read the story of a boy, a young teenager, to enter his head, with his language and his way of coding and reading the world. Get ready to immerse yourself in his thoughts, to filter everything through...
The books chosen by Andrea Salonia This review is available only in the original language _________________________________________________________________________ È probabile che uno qualunque tra noi uomini, noi maschi, soprattutto prossimi ai cinquant’anni, e con ancor maggiore verosimiglianza dopo i sessanta, abbia sentito parlare della prostata. Della propria o dell’altrui: sì, dottore, “ho la prostata”, come il mio amico Mario. Queste le fatidiche parole. Prostata, che non è organo che si veda, quindi bisogna essere capaci di immaginarselo....
“FRIDAY RE-VERSO” “From my house to his house we are separated by 574 km. Too many”. A little advice. A small book. A small voice: that of Tiromancino, soundtrack for hearts in transit. Browsing through these microscopic journeys leaves a bit of the feeling of when we hear Stitch say, “This is my family. I found it on my own. It’s small and broken, but beautiful.” Why write a book to tell about emotional places? Why...
Written by Alessia Colombo This review is available only in the original language. Tipologia: albo illustrato Tematiche principali: famiglia, ironia, fantasia Tecnica delle illustrazioni: matita e digitale Età consigliata: 3-7 anni Mamma, papà, Flavia e Noè, sono tutti a tavola per la cena. “Papà!Papà! C’è un mammut nel frigorifero!”, urla Noè. Prontamente il papà accorre e blocca il frigorifero, mentre la mamma chiama i pompieri. Neeee-nooo! Neeee-nooo! Eccoli finalmente. Oh no, il mammut è...
