Vittorio Zucconi
L'Aquila e il Pollo Fritto

The author of “Gli spiriti non dimenticano,” and many other consistently valuable books, director of Radio Capital, journalist at Repubblica, and so much more, returns.

L’aquila e il pollo fritto, published in 2008 shortly before the elections that witnessed Obama’s triumph, portrays the USA for better or worse. Zucconi depicts this vast country, uncovering both the most vibrant and the darkest colors of the world's largest democracy. Living in America, he captures as a citizen and taxpayer the political tensions, contradictions, great freedoms, and paradoxical absurdities in global spotlight, since everything in the USA makes news. The chapters of the book describe the obsessions of Americans, like meteorology; the schizophrenias such as the fight against smoking depicted as a mortal sin by the country that birthed it; another bizarre aspect is assessing how billions of dollars are spent on a war like the one in Iraq yet there is a lack of funds for social assistance for the entire population.

Zucconi offers us chapters that discuss major social topics, such as the multiraciality of modern America, which has reached the point of having a (at the time of publication still “candidate”) black president. Then, there are more historiographical chapters that talk about the great presidents of the past, their dodges to gain power, and all their merits and all their faults. There are thought-provoking points, we realize that often the USA is a model to imitate. It happens, and Zucconi explains very well how, that politicians of higher or lower rank are either imprisoned or “taken out” for their crimes. We would have much to learn! It also touches on emotional aspects such as the death penalty and all those vast cemeteries of young soldiers fallen in wars fought in places unknown to nine out of ten Americans. Many Americans, and I do not find it hard to believe, have discovered the existence of nations such as: Vietnam, Iran, Afghanistan, Iraq because their country went to war there. It's like reading an essay on Vajont when we discover what lies beneath the tragedy of the consequences of Hurricane Katrina.

America is a symbol of renewal, Italy is a symbol of stagnation, and this is very well explained by Zucconi. The language is always fluent and not bogged down by too many statistics or historical data. There are heavier passages to digest, such as those of pure politics. Enjoy discovering also the playful aspect of a book that is a great read, the author is skilled at making even seemingly tedious subjects, like Nascar races or the rise of a figure like Sarah Palin, interesting and enjoyable. Some chapters are certainly amusing, like the one about the relationship between American slang and “real” English, or the one on skyscrapers, the chapter on poker which is very popular lately, and the one on the most American of sports, baseball.

This book will keep you glued to its pages like a thriller, but it will provide you with historically valuable insights because, in the end, the USA, whether we like it or not, is within us and around us, yesterday, today, and tomorrow. 

"There is no event, drama, tragedy, crisis, human case that does not happen here as well. We have all the good and the evil, with any face. Whatever you want, it’s here."