L'ESERCIZIO

This is a rare and surprising novel, one that combines a twisty high-concept plot with a mature, self-assured and effortless writing. Part psychological thriller, part drama, part love story, L'ESERCIZIO blends realism and some disorienting elementsto explore the subject of identity, of self and self-representation, of what, for the better or the worse, really defines us.

Giorgia and Filippo are a young couple in their late twenties living in Milan. Together they have a regular and dull life, made of repeated routines, their big dreams just left behind. He sees her as a fragile and tormented person; she has a troubled past, but feels reassured by his normality. The subtle veil of stress surrounding them is pierced when Giorgia meets Mauro, an attractive theatre director she has already worked with, and a real supporter for her. He insists she comes back to the scenes, on stage, because he perfectly knows what makes her so talented: she is not really able to separate reality and fiction, her true self from the role she is playing. And then during the opening night of the show, she suffers a dramatic mental breakdown... the day after she is admitted to a psychiatric clinic. Outside Filippo and Mauro start hanging out together. Rivals yet united by their mutual affection for Giorgia, they soon realize that there is a simple and tempting way to heal her: they can team up and write a script where she is the main character, where she can play herself, or - even better - a new manipulated version of herself, so that she can go back to life. Go back being "normal", just slightly different. As it turns out, this is a dangerous game. What happens when you try to manipulate someone's identity? What gets lost when we try to normalize our peculiarities? Claudia Petrucci (1990) graduated in Modern Literature in Milan, where she worked as copywriter, web content editor and social media manager. She now lives in Perth, Australia. Claudia Petrucci's works (realistic, weird and sci-fi short stories and reportages) have been published on Cadillac, minima et moralia and other magazines.