“Now I’ll tell you how it went” is the first person of Allegra Paladino, a young Livornese lawyer transplanted to Milan, who traces the crucial passage of his career: the entry into the Berson Kley International Law Firm, placed and patinated place that soon proves to be a toxic environment, dominated by dynamics of power, psychological abuse and a ruthless culture of performance. The novel opens with a brilliant prologue that immerses the reader in an interview anxiety, and then transformed into a gradual and lucid descent into the mechanisms of systemic humiliation and silent resistance. Through vivid episodes, between sarcasm, irony and profound vulnerability, cheerful tells the price paid to “belong” to a professional world that, under the smooth surface, hides cynicism, male chauvinism and loneliness. Bianchi’s prose is direct, engaging, ironic and self -ironic. The rhythm is tight, at times diaristic, punctuated by vivid dialogues, pop references and legal incursions (articles of the civil and criminal code, ethical rules, law firm jargon) which confer authenticity and structure. Alessandra Bianchi signs a mature and necessary narrative novel, capable of dealing with acumen and intensity a complex and still little told matter: psychological violence in the “prestigious” places. The novel stands out for the ability to alternate registers – ironic, painful, analytical – and for the effective construction of the protagonist, whose voice holds together the story with intelligence, irony and disarming sincerity. A work that dialogues with contemporary feminism and confessional literature, without ever falling into victimization, but rather restoring dignity and depth to the experience of “remaining”.
Now I’ll tell you how it went
Alessandra Bianchi
CSA Editrice
ISBN: 9788893543026
pag. 230 – € 14.90
