Reykjavik di Ragnar Jonasson e Katrin Jakobsdottir tradotto da Irene Gandolfi

 Un libro dal fascino ipnotico, ammaliante: stupendo. Un cold case di sicuro interesse questo creato da Ragnar Jonasson e Katrin Jakobsdottir, dal titolo: Reykjavik,

edito da Marsilio.

Mi sono sempre interessata alle scomparse e ai cold case.

Così, quando ho visto tra le proposte di Marsilio questo giallo, l'ho subito richiesto e devo dire che mi è piaciuto moltissimo. Cattura il lettore, e lo fa con intelligenza. I dialoghi sono ben bilanciati con la narrazione degli eventi, con le descrizioni paesaggistiche o dei personaggi.

È un libro concepito durante la pandemia, scrivono gli autori. Stessa età, uno di questi, la signora Jakobsdottir è stata primo ministro islandese dal 2017 al 2024: Ragnar invece è uno scrittore di gialli e traduttore di Agatha Christie in Islanda. 

Siamo nel 1956, quando una ragazza di 15 anni Lara, che ha deciso di fare un'esperienza di lavoro presso una buona famiglia che ha acquistato una bella casa a Videy, un'isola a una manciata di minuti dalla capitale, scompare nel nulla. I genitori si dicono disperati e pensano che ci sia sotto qualcosa: la loro figlia è solare, allegra, non se ne andrebbe così. Responsabile e matura, non sarebbero da lei questi colpi di testa.

Responsabile delle indagini è Kristjan un poliziotto che si reca sull'isola, interroga i due coniugi, Ottar, il marito e Olof, la moglie, senza ricavarne nulla, e non solo: viene pesantemente redarguito da un superiore perché ha disturbato quelle personcine così carine. 
Kristjan è all'inizio della sua carriera, decide di allentare la morsa. La ragazza probabilmente sarà scappata via e tornerà a casa. Meglio non avere rogne.
Ma non è così.
Passano tre decenni e il caso di Lara resta ancora un mistero. Sarà fuggita? Sarà stata rapita e poi uccisa? 
Mah! 
Mentre Kristjan comincia a sentire il peso dell'indagine condotta male, un giovane giornalista, Valur, nel 1986, anno dello storico incontro tra Reagan e Gorbaciov nella piccola capitale islandese e dei duecento anni dalla fondazione della capitale, riprende in mano il caso. Lo fa con grande professionalità cercando ovunque nuove testimonianze e, per la prima volta, ricevendo un'imbeccata non da poco. 
È certo che finalmente possa svelare che fine abbia fatto la ragazza. Ne è entusiasta. Questo caso lo prende molto. 

A metà libro succede qualcosa di fragoroso, che rompe l'equilibrio cui ci avevano abituato gli autori, rendendoci lettori spiazzatie posso ammetterlo? Risentiti!

Ci riprendiamo. Dobbiamo farlo. Finalmente la giustizia trionferà, sebbene il prezzo pagato sarà stato altissimo. 

Possiamo solo scrivere per non spoilerare troppo  che, possono germogliare nuove prospettive anche grazie a dolori profondissimi ed acuti: questi possono far conoscere ancor meglio la direzione che prenderà la vita.


Un'altra tematica affrontata riguarda i segreti mantenuti per decenni, capaci di cambiare per sempre le esistenze delle persone.

Un  giallo da leggere anche per capire come fosse l'Islanda prima della fine del Comunismo, di fatto un ordine mondiale che avrebbe lasciato il passo alla globalizzazione.

Anna Maria Polidori

La Frontiera Viaggio Intorno alla Russia by Erika Fatland

 La Frontiera

Viaggio Intorno alla Russia by Erika Fatland is a new book by Marsilio. Russia is  a fascinating, magical, mysterious land. The biggest country of this world, my father used to say that the Russia was the "Granary of the World". An immense vastity that means also differences, linguisticals, climaticals, geographicals. 

The author, one of the best ones of Oslo, she also received the prize as one of the most influencial and good authors under 35 decided one day that she would have visited the entire russian border territory: and she made it! with the difficulties that you can imagine, with the most diversified drivers she met along her way, some toxic, curious, other ones polemics, I want to remember the taxi driver of Georgia polemic with Putin, grown up there; great relevance, in terms of chapters is given to Georgia, a land that has given to Russia a lot of politicians: I want to remember you of reading, for understand much better what the Communist Party meant for peasants, thinkers, people in general The Eight Life for Brilka by Nino Haratischwili, always published by Marsilio.

Erika tells when she decided at 22 years to afford to Russia, in the city of Puskin for studying Russian. It was a miserable experience, was pretty hot, the lady who gave her hospitality was pretty poor and she couldn't eat properly. Odessa was another experience and she reports the anedoct of her teacher. When she explained her that she would have wanted to read Dostoevskij in original, she suggested her of enter in a good mental predisposition, being lonely and in a tranquil place; the brain must be opened and receptive. With a lot of available time.

Erika visited also a little town where there are still swedish emigrated in Russia at the end of 1800: they still speak swedish and they try to maintain traditions, including their great tea, instead of drinking the horrible ukrainan one precised the son of Maria, the lady where Erika spent time with. What a beautiful experience. These two people lived in a very tiny house; the bathroom was outside, close to the stable of the hens; they live modestly, in the house there is also the washing machine, theoretically there is warm water in the house, but not all the time they receive it.

But, their hospitality has been the one that a king and a queen would donate to an appreciated guest. They donated to Erika time, a big dinner and a lot of cups of great tea! Yum! 

Interesting the visit at Cernobyl. I didn't know that: now they organize groups for tourists brought with a little bus in the city where there was the catastrophic nuclear disaster in 1986. Grass is still incredibly radioactive and people must avoid it with all themselves.

There was a park built for children and never inaugurated where tourists focuse the attention.

Every year, touristic tours started in 2001, Cernobyl counts 10-20.000 visitors.  A city at just 2 km from the nuclear central counted 50.000 people; it was the place where the workers of the nuclear atomic central, four in total, lived. 

Immediately after the disaster, all the people of the city remained at the obscure of the gravity of the situation living unprotected for a day and half; 36 hours: after that the government decided for reasons unclear at the time to the citizenship to evacuate the city, adding that they would have returned soon in the city; but the fact is that this one is a phantom city like the ones you meet in California and no one returned there.

There are still in the houses children toys left on the tables and the life is fixated in that historical moment. A sort of modern Pompeii, after all, because that days left unprepared the citizens and their life is crystallized in the latest instants spent in their houses. That houses tell their existence left behind forever. It is calculated that the emissions spread by Cernobyl were 200 times times superiors 8f compared to the ones of the atomic bombs of Hiroshima and Nagasaki-

Tyroid cancers, but also deficit at the immunitary system the main illnesses treated in the hospital of Cernobyl, where they don't wait a change for other 30 years. Erika interviews some survivors of the explosion, and most of them are still spending long long time to the hospital. No one want to declare what kind of illness they have, but everyone hate the sovietic regime for what done.

The atomic central explosed was a model developed by Russians but never approved in the western countries of the world because considered too dangerous.

Changing topic....In Caucasus explains Erika there is the biggest concentration of spoken languages and ethnic groups than not in the rest of the world. 

In less than 260 days she explored the most remote territories of the russian country, starting from Pyongyang.

The portraits accumulated of places, countries, is fantastically beauty; I leave to you the discovery of them I don't want to ruin your reading  spoiling too much. Erika is captivating, opened, someone enthusiastic of people, places and the desire of telling a complicated but absolutely fascinating land she is in love with. 

Enjoy this reading, it's perfect for the summer-time!

Highly recommended book.

I thank Marsilio for the physical copy of the book.

Anna Maria Polidori 

La Palestra dell'Autostima by Gabrielle Fellus

 La Palestra

dell'Autostima by Gabrielle Fellus book released by Marsilio, offer advices for restore people's self-esteem.

In most cases ugly, horrible, insensitive, cruel people steal the beauty of people and their being, reducing them at the pale existence of who they were.

In what way? Humiliating, removing the dignity that the person should have and denigrating them.

In most cases these horrible experiences are lived in a workplace: there is the boss "barking" continously against a certain worker; but also the boss abusing of a girl or children tormenting  other contemporaries because they think that that ones are the weakest part.

These people treated bad don't receive the sufficient respect that it is one of the main keys and value of a healthy and solid society.

A person who lived traumatic experience won't believe anymore at the possibility of affirming herself/himself, sometimes not being in grade of living at all a satisfying existence.

This one is a precious book for all that people who must sort out traumas of various genre, trying to resolve most of them.

The beauty of the book is also the fact that these examples are not theoric, but taken by reality and people followed by Gabrielle restored at the end their dignity, re-affirming themselves with their character, passions, and vitality. At work, at home, wherever dignity was destroyed by horrible people.

For every person in need of help!

 Highly recommended.

I thank Marsilio for the physical copy of this book.

Anna Maria Polidori