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Rating:
"Try not to feel too useful and above all do not consider your failure as a mark of distinction. The important thing is to achieve the tranquility of a frustrated and harmless existence, animated by small grudges devoid of antisocial implications ...characterized, if possible, by short and shallow breaths." C.B.
With a presentation like this (curious, provocative, and intelligent) I certainly could not refrain from reviewing this little book "Manual of Self-Destruction" by Carlo Bordini (1998, Fazi Editore, 126 pp), an intelligent and sarcastic book, a happy meeting between the meanness of Daniele Luttazzi, the narrative ingenuity of Italo Calvino, and the subtle irony of the early Woody Allen, with bewildering literary solutions and truly hilarious theses.
It is obvious that the entire reading should be done and filtered with a strong sense of humor of English matrix (Monty Python Docet!) because only in this way can one grasp the cruel and malicious irony with which the author lampoons the whims (and vices) of this sad humanity, overturning common sense ("Never miss the chance to criticize those around you rather than understanding them".... "base your life on regret, rather than on desire").
A truly intriguing and crazy manual, that makes one smile through clenched teeth (titles of some chapters: How to be cowardly to arouse contempt, How to cultivate relationships with treacherous people, How to bond with people one does not love... and so on), accompanied by real learning exercises in the appendix. In the end, an "applied example" entitled SUSANNA where the author practices the precious instructions in a romantic relationship with a girl (autobiographical? Well... this we are not given to know!).
A manual not recommended for those coming out of a troubled love story, for those who have just been fired or for those who will soon find themselves without even a roof to sleep under. In short, for those with major self-esteem and relationship problems.
Read superficially or desperately, without grasping the biting black humor hidden between the lines, it could prove lethal.
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