C'ERA UNA VOLTA ADESSO

What will we tell our grandchildren about us and our life? Mattia comes back to the spring of his ninth year, in 2020, when, while the world is locked up at home, he finds himself forced in the microcosm of his building to face his greatest enemy: his father, who had abandoned him when he was only three years old.

While everything turns upside down, anxiety and fear take over, the school is enclosed in a computer, the neighbors sing from the balconies and lovers live impossible love stories, thanks to the help of a grandmother who has learned the tender wisdom of life from books and stars, and of a rebellious and affectionate sister, Mattia will slowly discover something new and important: that growing up means trying to bet on others and learning to trust. Even the most bitter of our enemies. With extraordinary empathy and through a story of feelings and hopes Massimo Gramellini recounts the surprising discovery of being able to continuously reinvent ourselves. Massimo Gramellini is an Italian writer and journalist, editorialist at Corriere della Sera, where he runs a front-page daily column. Among his bestselling titles are Ci salveranno gli ingenui (2007), Cuori allo specchio (2008), L'ultima riga delle favole (2010), La magia di un buongiorno (2014), Fai bei sogni (2012) published by Longanesi and Prima che tu venga al mondo (2019) by Solferino.