This is the first book that I read in Italian and I must say that it was quite an experience. I've never dealt too much with a coming-of-age novels. In fact, it seems as if my bookshelf is a dichotomy of children's books and adults --- never a mixture of both. It is therefore a surprise that I find myself truly indulged with the narrator's poignant recollection of the past.
I must say that the main strength of the narrative is the realistic nature it took in unfolding the series of events. Certain events, erotic in nature, also came as a surprise especially when one thinks that this novel is supposedly intended for kids. Yet the ending, the climax of the series of betrayals the protagonist endured, is the most reminiscent of them all as all the doubts and confusions about the village's secret comes unraveling with the father discovering he had wounded his own son