The front cover of the English edition of this book was so profoundly ugly that I had to use the Italian one for the blog (which is ultimately fine, also because I read the book in Italian after all...).
At first I found it funny that this author's first name was actually the surname of the former Israeli Prime Minister, then I realized that his first name is actually the surname of his grandfather, the former Israeli Prime Minister.
I didn't have great expectations from this novel, as I hadn't particularly liked Three Floors Up, but World Cup Wishes was a very pleasant surprise, and so far is without a doubt the best book I've read in 2023 (yes, it's February 7th, but still, it's best book out of the six that I've read).
Why did I like it, you ask? After all, it's a pretty normal story of love and friendship, against the backdrop of Tel Aviv and Haifa. But I like a bildungsroman that tells the story of someone who is still full of flaws in his 30s, and I like a bildungsroman that tells the story of someone in his 30s in the first place (now try to guess my age...). And the decision to present the book as a manuscript marginally edited by its (fictional) author's friend plays nicely with the mind of the reader, who can't take anyone's word and is left wondering about who's right and who's wrong, but most of all develops an interest for the lives of all characterts, despite not really liking all of them.
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