M, the son of the century, the last novel by Antonio Scurati

The birth of Fascism seen through the eyes of Mussolini …

I admit, the approach to this novel was not easy. I probably wasn't psychologically ready to drink 800 pages of history all in one go. I would have liked to specify "true story", but the controversies around this work have somehow changed the perspective of reading and the veracity of the text, so, without asking too many questions, I preferred to credit the author with an immense historical research to which a considerable applause certainly goes.

It took five years to write it, analyze documents, minutes, gather news and assemble the pieces of a historical moment that marked the political life of Italy from 1919 to 1924 with the birth of Fascism. An important work, no doubt, but for how much Scurati he wanted to give the book a fictional approach, thus emphasizing its ease of reading and understanding, in my humble opinion, we are faced with a veritable documented historical treatise, precise in the temporal references, embellished, at the end of each chapter, by the critical look of the author.

The title leaves no doubt about the intentions, with a magnifying glass, the advent of Fascism is told, sectioned, by the foundations of the Fasci to the creation of the party until the rise to power of the dictator and his apparent fall after the death of Matteotti . Indeed, it is Mussolini himself, the absolute protagonist, a true pack leader of "derelict and delirious, of a people of veterans, humanity of survivors and leftovers from prison ”.

His is the imperious voice behind the scenes, he speaks of himself, ambitious, libertine, the attentive gaze of those who have understood that violence is a good way to discipline the masses, but above all to wear the dress of the thaumaturgical able to defend, protect the honor of a nation. In some ways the writer takes us back to the vision of a man who is always poised between the irrational extreme and the man who betrays his true nature, the son of ordinary people contaminated by doubts and uncertainties.

Mussolini's multiple personalities become histrionic, adapt to the moment, he does it with everyone, with Sarfatti, D'Annunzio, Balbo, Giolitti, Matteotti and all those that revolve like crazy satellites around his figure, sons of a fallen Italy on their knees through which everything is accepted as long as the desired goal is reached. and the right reward is given to the sacrifices of the "oppressed avengers".

"What a wonderful panic, this midwife of history! I hate in exchange for Fear! The new fascists are all men who lived in fear until yesterday, ate fear, drank fear. Small bourgeois haters: the new army will be formed of this. The downgraded middle classes, I who, more than anything else, feel insulted by the new shoes of the farmer's daughter, all ready to kiss the shoes of any new master as long as there is something to trample on! ”.

There is no doubt, there is a lot of work behind the writing of M the son of the century. Scurati as a teacher of literature and narrative writing, he shows off, presumptuously, a lively, articulated dialectic, raises the volume of violence when the case requires it, describes personalities well as to justify or at least anticipate the most obvious actions even if dictated by an overflowing desire for omnipotence, recognizes moods, accentuates them, insinuating itself with personal reflections, in this, I admit is very good.

Without going any further, the text is an immense forge of information, sometimes excessive, writing however, in some moments loses its lightness, especially in the first part, in any case, there is no doubt that such a text should be read with attention, and maybe, I will say more, even reread, like the exam papers, to live and learn better the historical reality. To a careful informative but above all formative analysis, I would insert it in a program of didactic readings, after all, Scurati, with M, and stressed it even after the victory at Strega Award, wanted to give Fascism the version closest to reality, "where there is nothing invented, "Of which we must understand the dynamics and, precisely for this reason, to avoid.

Telling Fascism, for the first time in a novel, through fascists and without ideological prejudices, is my contribution to the re-establishment of anti-fascism "