Clash of Civilisations Over
an Elevator in Piazza Vittorio
by Amara Lakhous
Translated by Ann Goldstein
Lorenzo Manfredini, a thug who goes by the moniker The Gladiator, is found dead in the elevator of an apartment building on Piazza Vittorio in Rome. On the same day, a man called Amedeo goes missing, a fact which, in the police’s books, makes him the prime – if not the obvious suspect. Amara Lakhous’ novel – winner of the prestigious Premio Flaiano when it was first published in Italian in 2006 – consists of transcripts of brief police interviews with people who knew Manfredini and Amedeo, interspersed with diary-like entries by the mysterious, elusive Amedeo himself. The interviews provide an insight into the kaleidoscope of cultures which collides in central Rome. Indeed, the subject of the novel is not primarily the fairly tame whodunnit which propels the narrative forward, but the theme of immigration, race and multiculturalism. We learn of the tribulations of foreign immigrants, but also of the inherent racism of such individuals as the Neapolitan concierge Benedetta, even while she is herself looked down upon by Northerners who have settled in the city. Eventually, we discover that Amedeo – taken for an Italian by most of the “witnesses” – is also an immigrant with a poignant past.
Clash of
Civilisations Over an Elevator in Piazza Vittorio is an enjoyable, often humorous,
sometimes moving novel, well rendered in Ann Goldstein’s translation. That
said, considering the depth of the themes it addresses, I found it rather
superficial. The interrogations are not
long enough to really allow us to delve into the character of the interviewees,
who are often portrayed as something of a caricature – the Romanista bar
owner, the Milanese snob, the racist Neapolitan. The solution to the mystery is underwhelming,
if not downright silly. However, this bittersweet
novel doesn’t outstay its welcome, and provides an authentic (and, for some,
possibly surprising) view on contemporary Italy.
Paperback, 131 pages
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