First Execution
Paperback Published on: 12/03/2009
Price: £7.99
Synopsis
When had I tamed myself? It had been a lengthy apprenticeship, begun when I was as young as ten, and continued relentlessly throughout my adolescence, when I had discovered to my own terror that I wanted to murder somebody: my father, a sarcastic friend, my professor of Latin and Greek, even a rude passerby. It was not until I was almost twenty that I began to suspect that, along with the repression of my violent impulses, I had repressed everything, even my ability to experience a profound emotion, even my impulse to do good deeds and help others. I had become as good as I had hoped to be, but good with the cautious detachment of one who never indulges in excess.
When apparently mild-mannered retired teacher Domenico Stasi learns that a former student of his is being held as a suspected terrorist, he seeks her out to assure himself of her innocence and that his teachings have not created a monster. But she proudly declares her guilt. What's more, she entrusts him with a task that initially seems a child's game but soon becomes much more serious...
Domenico Starnone is an Italian writer, screenwriter and journalist. He was born in Naples and lives in Rome. He is the author of fourteen works of fiction, including the recently translated Ties (Prima esecuzione). First Execution (Via Gemito), was the winner of Italy's most prestigious literary prize, the Strega.
Publisher information
- Publisher: Europa Editions
- ISBN: 9781933372662
- Number of pages: 173
- Dimensions: 210 x 135 mm
- Weight: 186g
- Languages: English