A catalogue of writes and books on the rural world

A can’t-miss list of titles for the lovers of the agricultural world and of country life and its complex dynamics. (6. To be continued)

by L. C.

ORENGO Nico. Gli spiccioli di Montale. Requiem per un oliveto: a stretch of see, an olive grove that risks to disappear, the tear of a stolen memory. When the novel was published in 1992, the author was sued for slander and put on trial, but his intention was just defending a part of Liguria from bulldozers and concrete.

POWERS Richard. Three Farmers on their way to a Dance: in 1914, the famous photographer August Sander – one of the first to use his camera on the face of common men – took a picture of three young farmers going to a ball, opening a door from that moment and the future. The youngsters were immortalized in moments of innocent joy, just before World War I began. The three stories are surprisingly connected and propose a mystery which stretches throughout a century of brutalization and progress.

RENDELL Ruth. The Roar of the Butterflies: a group of ecologists rallies to protest against the construction of a highway through woods and meadows. The inspector Wexford is on their side, until his wife Dora is abducted and threatened of death if the construction will not be blocked. A nail-biting crime novel.

RIGONI STERN Mario. La storia di Tönle: the protagonist, Tönle Bintarn, was a farmer, shepherd but also smuggler. His actions have upset the Asiago plateau and mixed with the great events in history. Tönle remains a man anchored to the earth, to the alternation of seasons, to nature and to life, even though he is forced to tackle the overwhelming reality of events.