Tullio Avoledo is one of the most original authors in our literary scene. Few people know how to tell our present like him, few know how to describe the times we are living in live, but with the right detachment. That right distance that every writer needs to avoid turning everything into a cold chronicle or a sentimental soliloquy. For this reason, Avoledo's latest literary work, How to Kill a Gentleman (Neri Pozza, 2025, Euro 20.00, pp. 384. Also Ebook) does not disappoint. Indeed, page after page it reveals itself to be an intense novel, alternating dark and sweet tones, anger and hilarity, tenderness and ferocity, accurately reflecting the contradictions of our time, dotted with anxiety and hope.
The protagonist of the book is a character who is completely new to the universe of the writer from Pordenone, the lawyer Vittorio Contrada, known as "Controvento" among his friends. He is portrayed as a man with a frank character, both for his frankness and for the determination that distinguishes him. He decided to change his life, abandoning corporate law to dedicate himself exclusively to environmental causes and ethically relevant battles. He said goodbye to dream trips, millionaire deals, unbridled luxuries and opportunities to exploit, taking refuge in a modest office, in the company of Gloria Almariva, a tenacious and combative colleague, far from the standard of successful female lawyers. It was, that of Contrada, a surprising change of direction, effectively rendered by Avoledo with a few lines and a beautiful definition: "At a certain point Vittorio had decided to change his life. He had taken a sabbatical that had then been extended, and upon his return to the field his colleagues and rivals were left speechless by the change, which Vlad himself, the rising gladiator of the Capurro and Ricciardi studio, had summed up like this: «Fuck, there is nothing more pathetic than a shark that becomes vegan»
But sharks, even if vegan, change their tastes, but they don't lose their teeth. Those remain nice and sharp. Contrada hasn't lost his fighting spirit and determination to emerge. Furthermore, he maintains his passion for beautiful women and vintage cars. When Valerio Del Zotto resurfaces from his past with a briefcase - his legendary briefcase that always holds treasures or precious ideas - and dies shortly after, Vittorio can't stand by and watch. He senses that there is something fishy in that briefcase and decides to investigate, supported by Gloria. The case takes him to an isolated mountain community trapped in an unscrupulous real estate speculation, but behind the rivers that deviate their course and the valleys invaded by bulldozers there are forces far more powerful than the two lawyers can imagine. Sometimes, however, they reveal themselves
more dangerous can be small, almost insignificant ideas. Between a chaotic Milan – excessive, cruel and unjust – and a proud and paradisiacal Friuli, threatened by those who want to destroy it, Avoledo offers us a disenchanted, but not cynical, panorama of today's Italy. A terribly materialistic country and incapable of overcoming the most bandit-like models of capitalism and at the same time in need of dreams, high ambitions and honesty. A country in need of finding itself and believing in itself.
