With The Crossroads, translated from the Italian by Jonathon Hunt, Niccolò Ammaniti has given us a genuinely thrilling novel, populated with a cast of unfortunates whose lives are far from easy, yet some of who we come to care for deeply. The apparent focal point for the narrative is the bank raid planned by three unemployed misfits: Rino Zina, who harbours right-wing views that would make Mussolini blush; the apparent simpleton Corrado Rumitz, known to everyone as Quattro Formaggi after his fondness for pizzas; and Danilo, the architect of the heist. A less well-equiped gang of criminals it’s hard to imagine. However, the raid turns out to be a distraction from a much darker and more distressing storyline.

The real focus of the book is Rino’s son, Christiano – in the prologue, we come to understand that he does not enjoy anything like a normal existence for a thirteen year old boy, when his father hands him a gun and sends him off on a mission to shoot the dog in the neighbouring factory that’s keeping them awake. Rino is a drunk and a womanizer, and yet his relationship with Christiano is quite affecting in many ways, for instance in their little conspiracy to deceive the social worker (they are always playing Monopoly when he visits). Danilo and Quattro Formaggi are Christiano’s beloved uncles, and he is in on their robbery plan, though not expected to take part. The degree to which Christiano is accustomed to such notions tells you a lot about the life he has lived.

Then comes the night that changes everything – a horrible, wild night, with gale-force winds and torrential rain. It’s the night planned for the robbery, but in the event only Danilo makes the attempt; elsewhere, Quattro Formaggi, who was treated like the village idiot by those around him, reveals a darker side to his personality, and first Rino and then Christiano are drawn in against their will. What follows is shocking, and bloody.

The Crossroads is in many ways a bleak book: a picture of the corrosive effects of unemployment and lack of education on a rural society; a depiction of mental illness, of grief, of despair. But for all that, it’s got some very touching moments, as well as some very funny ones. Ammaniti artfully juggles his cast of characters, including the hapless, lovelorn social worker Beppe Trecca, and puts you in a situation where you will find yourself rooting for Rino, despite his myriad failings, because of what he means to his son. Through it all, Christiano endures so much more than anyone, of any age, should have to, and emerges stronger for it. A dark and compelling novel that I would definitely recommend.

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