Also, the only two characters worth your attention, in the end are depicted as weak outcasts that end up being pushed in a corner or crashed either by society or other human beings. A very positive message indeed. All of the characters in this novel demand your empathy: Once you start in on their troubles, their small victories, and their life-destroying defeats, the book is impossible to put down.
And because this is Ammaniti, you can be sure that the children encounter something so disfiguring, yet so heartbreakingly human, that they can't help but be thrust into adulthood.
And meanwhile, the adults in their rural towns are not immune to the influx of cosmopolitan corruption here in the form of "the most fuckable woman on the planet". Beautiful novel. Like "Io non ho paura", you cannot put it down once you start Wowowow… Ok.
This novel, like so many written by modern italian authors in recent years, is dark, tragic, grotesque and… unsettling, i can add this. I add that i read this book in just 2 days. I utterly devoured it, for a few reasons. To start off, I think this novel is a representation of what Italian provincial life is, or at least of how Ammaniti perceives it: obviously in a stereotypical, exaggerated way, because Amman Wowowow… Ok. And these are just a few examples. For this reason the structure of the book reminded me of a series of movies and series that have gained immense popularity in italy and even abroad: one is the series "", which centres around characters that are somehow linked to each other, and very similarly are all pretty grotesque.
There is no true plot, just a bunch of bizarre people whose lives are intertwined and their ends are tragic. They have no goal, no apparent interest in life, they just survive the waves of misfortune by swimming and swimming, and then, eventually, sinking. And what happens to the people you truly pine for throughout the book is perfectly explained by the Darwinian theory of evolution, something that was also applied by another Italian novelist, the Sicilian Giovanni Verga: the weaker ones, the kind ones, are overpowered, literally devoured by the strong and heartless ones.
And this is a very common theme indeed in italian movies and literature, as cruel it may seem. It reflects a rather dark, undiscovered side of Italy, which is often concealed by tourism and and sometimes let into the light by the odd movie about the mafia in New York.
So is this fundamental pessimism on existence a reflection of a society torn by injustices within the legal system and government? In Ischiano Scalo it is at least, since justice there is, in fact, virtually non existent. The fact is, Ammaniti took on a great deal with this book, but ultimately his vibrant, lively and imaginative prose, which is what makes the book so entertaining, the list of varied and exaggerated characters, the post-apocalyptic, dark setting a true specialty of the author , put this novel very high up in the ranks for me.
This book has been on my shelf unread for probably 10 years, but I was motivated to pick it up due to its Italian author and setting, given that I was travelling in Italy.
To be honest, the novel was ok for me. It took me a while to work out where it was heading, as Ammaniti introduced several different seemingly unrelated characters, but, thanks to the nature of small town life, their lives become intertwined, if only briefly in some cases.
I didn't particularly warm to, or identify with, any of This book has been on my shelf unread for probably 10 years, but I was motivated to pick it up due to its Italian author and setting, given that I was travelling in Italy.
I didn't particularly warm to, or identify with, any of them - indeed there were a few who I actively detested, which I suppose was the author's intention. The twist in the novel was a little unexpected at the end, though the run up a little contrived. On hindsight, not really a holiday novel, given the area and subjects the book covered. All in all, it's been a while since I read any Ammaniti and on the strength of this novel I won't be going back to read any more any time soon.
View 2 comments. Pietro Moroni finds at the end of the school year that he's the only student in his class not to pass. The crushing blow sets the tone for the rest of the story and we're taken back six months to learn the events leading up to the failing.
Additionally we meet Graziano Biglia, the small Italian town's prodigal son, who returns under his own set of extenuating circumstances. There are other characters as well, from Gloria, Pietro's best friend, to Flora Palmieri, Pietro's favorite teacher. Each o Pietro Moroni finds at the end of the school year that he's the only student in his class not to pass. Each of the characters has a different role in the story, and they all work together separately to bring around the events we learn in the beginning of the book are going to happen.
I've seen comparisons to Winesburg, Ohio which sort of makes me throw up a little in my mouth considering how little I like or appreciate Sherwood Anderson. But Ammaniti actually made me care for his characters, even the nasty ones. Anderson never made me give a hoot about any of Winesburg's inhabitants. I'll Steal You Away takes a similar concept - a small town and its people - but actually tells a complete story, with a beginning and an end.
It begins with the promise that there's actually a point to the story, something I don't feel Anderson accomplished at all with Winesburg. This is the kind of story that deserves to be made into a movie and could actually be something. Jul 22, Rosa rated it did not like it. The book was gift, since the book merchant knew it was anything but literature Following a sane policy for avid readers, to put down a book after ten or so pages, one can imagine what was the outcome.
If a writer or scribbler hasn't managed to present living characters or experiences they could have happened in the present, past or future to the selective readers' imagination, and to captivate their attention in the first chapter or What I think is actually immaterial.
Today, so many books, worthless scraps, are hailed as literature from all sides, for umpteenth reasons ideological? The last word is my contribution to the saying! Ammaniti is a great writer and he writes some great books. They are invariably a little weird while still being gritty and realistic.
This book is no exception, although it is one of his earliest works and perhaps that shows a little. Every book of his powerfully evokes a feeling for the place it is set in. So this story is about Pietro, living in a poor family, son of a shepherd, brother to a school dropout. He is friends with a girl from a rich family, but otherwise has no friends and is bullie Ammaniti is a great writer and he writes some great books.
He is friends with a girl from a rich family, but otherwise has no friends and is bullied. Meanwhile playboy Graziano Biglia is having a midlife crisis and returns to his home in the same village. The stories of these characters slowly intertwine. All the characters are well imagined in this story and many others find their way into it. Some are integral to the whole, and others escape quickly. The author writes them all well.
Some scenes were very funny. I think I even chuckled out loud at the scene where a feud between Pietro's father and a neighbour resulted in Elsewhere things are painful. Ammaniti makes a powerful point in this book, and ultimately the ending is bittersweet. There is pain but there is hope. I found this author when reading in Italian and I think I may have begun this story a few years ago in Italian too as "Ti prendo e ti porto via" but I must have stopped reading it, perhaps when I had to return the library book, because I seem to have only read half of it.
I finished it in English after finding the English library book. My only real criticism of this work was the writing style. In questa periferica maremma di paludi e zanzare, di bar e casette affacciate sul nulla di una strada provinciale si svolgono due storie d'amore.
Pietro e Gloria sono due ragazzini. Qui conosce la professoressa Flora Palmieri, una donna sola e misteriosa che ha rinunciato alla propria vita per prendersi cura della madre. E tra i due, in apparenza lontani come i pianeti di due galassie, nasce un'attrazione. Una folla di creature strambe e grottesche si muove attorno ai protagonisti, come nella scia di un vento elettrico e vorticoso.
Da una folla di personaggi dickensiani ne emergono due, Pietro e Graziano Le loro storie convergono in un climax devastante, totalmente inatteso». Sareste dei pazzi a non visitare Ischiano Scalo». This single location in Queensland: I get confused with each paragraph. Cover to cover with cliches. New things await you. Also, the only two characters worth your attention, in the end are depicted as weak outcasts that end up being pushed in a corner or crashed either by society or other human beings.
Skip to content Skip to search. Imagine a Sicily as mysterious as a forgotten continent, where there is no electricity and wild dogs follow you on the highway. Different storylines of characters in and around a village come together at a certain point and ammanitu away again. Some examples of that were along the lines of: And even they may not be enough to stop the rampage of the school psychopath.
Home All editions This editionEnglish, Book edition: Also, the only two characters worth your attention, in the end are depicted as weak outcasts that end up being pushed in a corner or crashed either by society or other human beings. This single location in South Australia: Unfortunately, it was part of the obligatory literature at school, otherwise I would never read it.
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