Mussolini visto (troppo) da vicino

Antonio Scurati’s “documentary novel” on the life of Mussolini provokes ambivalent evaluations. Valuable in terms of historical information, the narrative traces the events live, from the point of view of the characters. The sense of incompleteness of the present is counterbalanced by an excessively debunking characterization of the protagonist, which is functional to the articulation of the author’s historical-moral judgment. As a consequence, M seems to fit George Orwell’s definition of a “good bad book”.