THE
DISCOVERY OF DAWN
Walter Veltroni is not your typical Italian politician. Yet, at age 52, he has spent more than half his life in politics, rising from a young activist in the Italian Communist party to Parliament and later serving in the cabinet of Prime Minister Prodi. From 2001 – 2008 he was the hugely popular Mayor of Rome, establishing new cultural initiatives and bringing a renewed excitement and energy to the Eternal City. This past spring he ran for Prime Minister. Defeated by Berlusconi, he is currently leader of Italy’s political opposition. Despite his many years working in government, he has found time to be a journalist, essayist and author. A devotee of American politics (and NBA basketball) as well as a connoisseur of Italo Calvino, Veltroni is one of the most influential and popular voices in Italy’s cultural scene. Now, this fall, American readers can discover his first novel, THE DISCOVERY OF DAWN translated into English by Douglas Hofstadter. Here he tells the intimate and moving story of Giovanni Astengo, a husband and father of two whose past is marked by the sudden disappearance of his father when he was only 13 years old. One day, Astengo visits the old home he grew up in, which is now abandoned. Once inside, he picks up a Bakelite phone, dials his old number and finds he is able to reconnect with his 13-year-old self and to a violent time in Italy’s history -- the mid-seventies when the Red Brigades emerged as a violent terrorist organization. Through these mysterious phone conversations, he is able to piece together the mystery of his father’s vanishing act and learns the terrible truth of what drove him away. Veltroni will come to New York City for interviews and events. |
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