Let the Games Begin
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- $17.99
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- $17.99
Publisher Description
A perfectly timed political satire from the internationally bestselling author of I'm Not Scared and Me and You.
It is the most decadent party of the century. A nouveau riche real estate magnate has planned a lavish weekend for a who's-who of celebrities: starlets, politicians, soccer stars and intellectuals. Among them is a neurotically charming author struggling to write his next book and hoping to rejuvenate his reputation.
In an unexpected turn of events, he crosses paths with the Wilde Beasts of Abaddon, a satanic sect planning to ruin the evening's festivities and become celebrated as a world-famous cult. What was intended as the most lavish spectacle of the year quickly descends into chaos.
Let the Games Begin, international best-selling author Niccolo Ammaniti fuses a riotous dose of absurdity with a clear-eyed critique of the superficiality and vulgarity of modern culture. Let the Games Begin may well be, as Italian left-wing daily L'Unita remarked, 'the print version of La Dolce Vita for the present day.'
Niccolo Ammaniti was born in Rome in 1966. He has written two collections of short stories and six novels, four of which have been translated into English. He was the youngest ever winner of the Italian Viareggio Literary Prize for Fiction for his best-selling novel I'm Not Scared, which has been translated into thirty-five languages. The Crossroads received the Premio Strega Prize in 2007, Italy's equivalent to the Booker Prize.
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'One of the best writers of his generation.' Otago Daily Times
'Ammaniti writes about an Italy you don't read about in the travel books.' Sunday Telegraph
'A young novelist with extraordinary narrative gifts.' Australian
'Niccolo Ammaniti is the best novelist of his generation.' Il Giornale
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Sometimes warmhearted, sometimes shockingly offensive, and much of the rest of the time very funny, Ammaniti's (I'm Not Scared) new novel is like a rich, delicious stew with a few pieces of spoiled meat included for good measure. Saverio Moneta is a Satanist whose sect, the Wilde Beasts of Abbadon, is in trouble after shrinking to just four members, including the plump Roberto Morsillo (nicknamed "Murder") and "Zombie," who has digestive problems. Silvia, the fourth member, joins up after escaping from being buried alive by the group. Saverio's solution to their diminishing numbers is to concoct an ambitious plan involving Larita, a singer who recently had a religious conversion. Meanwhile, Fabrizio Ciba, a popular author, is having trouble writing the great novel he knows he's capable of. When he and the Beasts meet at one of the most lavish parties modern Rome has ever seen, any number of things can happen and they do. This book pulls off a rare feat: an action-packed but well-paced satire populated with characters rather than caricatures.
