I'm Not Scared - Softcover

Niccolo Ammaniti

Softcover

ISBN 10: 187700846X ISBN 13: 9781877008467

Publisher: Text Publishing, 2003

Synopsis

Winner of the prestigious 2001 Viareggio-Repaci Prize for Fiction. 1978, the hottest summer of the twentieth century. In a tiny Italian rural community, the adults shelter indoors while six children venture out on their bikes across the scorched, deserted countryside. In the midst of a sea of golden wheat, nine-year-old Michele Amitrano discovers a secret so momentous, so terrible, that he dare not tell anyone about it. To come to terms with what he finds, he will have to draw strength from his own imagination and sense of humanity. The reader witnesses a dual story: the one that is seen through Michele's eyes, and the tragedy involving the adults of this isolated hamlet. The result is an immensely powerful, lyrical and skilfully narrated novel, reminiscent of such classics as Stand By Me, To Kill a Mockingbird andThe Adventures of Tom Sawyer. A compelling and utterly absorbing read, I'm Not Scared reinforces Ammaniti's status as a major literary talent.

About this title

Review

The Italian countryside in the summer of 1978. The hottest for nearly a century, when adults migrated indoors behind shutters to wait for the relatively cooler evenings before emerging. Children, free of parental restraint, make the most of this and spend their days playing in the countryside, enjoying their new-found freedom. In the tiny hamlet of Acqua Traverse, Michele and his friends cycle the surrounding area, gradually going further and further away from home. Playing games involving forfeits for the loser, it is this that causes Michele to make a momentous discovery, one that will change his life forever. With a child's naivete, he is unable to comprehend the implications of his find and treats the situation as just another childhood adventure. But even at his young age, he realises he must treat it with trepidation, fear and secrecy. Author Niccolo Ammaniti spins a magical yet eery tale of a childhood summer spoilt by an adult crime, slowly building up the tension until the final shocking conclusion. Capturing a child's mind with uncanny accuracy, he takes the reader back to their adolescence and the fears and inquisitiveness that goes with it. This is a stunning, startling read admirably translated by Jonathan Hunt. - Lucy Watson

Book Description

'A deft masterpiece with never a false note' - Guardian

Edition details

• Publisher: Text Publishing
• Publication date: 2003
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 187700846X
• ISBN 13: 9781877008467
• Binding: Paperback