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Oganized by the Consulate General of Italy in Vancouver and EUNIC Canada-Vancouver, the next meeting of the EU Book Club, moderated by prof. Elena Zampieri, will focus on a novel by renowned contemporary author Alessandro D’Avenia: Bianca come il latte, rossa come il sangue (2013).

The Book | White like silence, red like song

“I was born on the first day of school, and grew up and became old in just two hundred days.” Sixteen-year-old Leo has a way with words, but he doesn’t know it yet. He spends his time texting, polishing soccer maneuvers, and killing time with Niko and Silvia. Until a new teacher arrives and challenges him to give voice to his dreams.

And so Leo is inspired to win over the red-haired beauty Beatrice. She doesn’t know Leo exists, but he’s convinced that his dream will come true. When Leo lands in the hospital and learns that Beatrice has been admitted too, his mission to be there for her will send him on a thrilling but heartbreaking journey. He wants to help her but doesn’t know how—and his dream of love will force him to grow up fast.

A rich, funny, and heartwarming coming-of-age tale asking us to explore the meaning—and the cost—of friendship, and showing us what happens when suffering bursts into the world of teenagers and renders the world of adults speechless.

The novel (translated in English by Tabitha Sowden) is available via Amazon (also in Kindle format) and from VPL in Italian and in its English translation.