What Hell Is Not

A heart-rending story of deprivation and resilience in mafia-run Palermo

`Take away love and you will have hell, you used to say to me, Don Pino. Give love and you will have what hell is not.'

Sicily, 1993. Fear rules the streets of Palermo. Teenage boys patrol the narrow streets armed with AK-47's, marking out the territory of their mafia bosses. This is what hell is.

Federico, a privileged local boy, is asked by his teacher, Don Pino, to help out at the youth club he runs in one of the most destitute areas of the city. A tangle of alleys controlled by men with nicknames like the Hunter, it is also where kids like Francesco, Lucia, and Totò never give up hope for a different life. Over that long hot summer, far removed from his familiar surroundings, a new world opens up for Federico, but when Don Pino is murdered, the future of the kids is entrusted to his young hands.

Based on real events, What Hell is Not is a heartrending story of deprivation and resilience that ultimately demonstrates the transformative power of small acts of love.

1127731695
What Hell Is Not

A heart-rending story of deprivation and resilience in mafia-run Palermo

`Take away love and you will have hell, you used to say to me, Don Pino. Give love and you will have what hell is not.'

Sicily, 1993. Fear rules the streets of Palermo. Teenage boys patrol the narrow streets armed with AK-47's, marking out the territory of their mafia bosses. This is what hell is.

Federico, a privileged local boy, is asked by his teacher, Don Pino, to help out at the youth club he runs in one of the most destitute areas of the city. A tangle of alleys controlled by men with nicknames like the Hunter, it is also where kids like Francesco, Lucia, and Totò never give up hope for a different life. Over that long hot summer, far removed from his familiar surroundings, a new world opens up for Federico, but when Don Pino is murdered, the future of the kids is entrusted to his young hands.

Based on real events, What Hell is Not is a heartrending story of deprivation and resilience that ultimately demonstrates the transformative power of small acts of love.

27.89 In Stock
What Hell Is Not

What Hell Is Not

by Alessandro D'Avenia

Narrated by Danny Campbell

Unabridged — 10 hours, 18 minutes

What Hell Is Not

What Hell Is Not

by Alessandro D'Avenia

Narrated by Danny Campbell

Unabridged — 10 hours, 18 minutes

Audiobook (Digital)

$27.89
(Not eligible for purchase using B&N Audiobooks Subscription credits)
$29.99 Save 7% Current price is $27.89, Original price is $29.99. You Save 7%.

Listen on the free Barnes & Noble NOOK app


Related collections and offers


Overview

A heart-rending story of deprivation and resilience in mafia-run Palermo

`Take away love and you will have hell, you used to say to me, Don Pino. Give love and you will have what hell is not.'

Sicily, 1993. Fear rules the streets of Palermo. Teenage boys patrol the narrow streets armed with AK-47's, marking out the territory of their mafia bosses. This is what hell is.

Federico, a privileged local boy, is asked by his teacher, Don Pino, to help out at the youth club he runs in one of the most destitute areas of the city. A tangle of alleys controlled by men with nicknames like the Hunter, it is also where kids like Francesco, Lucia, and Totò never give up hope for a different life. Over that long hot summer, far removed from his familiar surroundings, a new world opens up for Federico, but when Don Pino is murdered, the future of the kids is entrusted to his young hands.

Based on real events, What Hell is Not is a heartrending story of deprivation and resilience that ultimately demonstrates the transformative power of small acts of love.


Editorial Reviews

Literary Hub

‘If, like me, you are a fan of Elena Ferrante's Neapolitan Quartet, I urge you to check out What Hell is Not.’

Chicago Fra Noi

What Hell Is Not celebrates resilience in the face of deprivation and the transformative power of small acts of love.’

blog review Marjorie's World of Books

‘Each short chapter of this book is a work of poetic beauty, some showing the transformative power of love and some showing the devastation that hate brings into the world.’

Herald Scotland

‘D'Avenia convincingly conveys the extent of the deprivation and of the reach of the Mafia's influence and control... [He] has a lyrical touch amid the violence and the squalor.’

author of Skylark Farm Antonia Arslan

‘The dark story of Father Pino’s passion and death is a long shriek of grief, but it is not in vain: it is also a hymn to love that becomes beauty.’

Libero

‘A mature work that looks the theme of evil and violence in the eye.’

Booklist

‘Rich in figurative language... [the story is] equally rich in characterization and setting.’

New York Journal of Books

‘A beautifully written novel, translated from the Italian, with a heartwarming story... The language soars like a symphony. The notes are in perfect pitch.’

Booklist

‘Rich in figurative language... [the story is] equally rich in characterization and setting.’

Product Details

BN ID: 2940172698002
Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Publication date: 01/24/2019
Edition description: Unabridged
From the B&N Reads Blog

Customer Reviews