“Narrator Edoardo Ballerini elevates this poignant audiobook..His tone befits a work that combines memoir, economic analysis, and speculation…This is an immersive and satisfying listen. Winner of the AudioFile Earphones Award.”

“He laments the changes brought about by unpredictable viruses, giving readers permission to mourn the world that was and reflect on the time when we moved freely, indulged and enjoyed life, and socialized with little understanding of its fragility….Haunting and lovely: Readers will eagerly join Nesi in his remembrances.”

“Nesi’s perfectly weighted, winding sentences are moving, and his unique perspective—informed by conversations with Italian luminaries as well as trips to Florence or the beach—add beauty to the melancholic tone.”

“An intimate account of very recent history and an expansive story of a nation. Only Nesi could enfold fashion, economic theory, and literature into something so lapidary and beautiful.”

“[An] elegant, witty book about Italy, economics, Covid, and family…Nesi applies Platonic questioning to economic experts, friends, and his personal memories, until past losses and the unknown present absorb us like a good novel.”

“As Italy becomes the first European nation gripped by the pandemic, Nesi picks up his phone and calls old friends…asking them what is going to happen. Their predictions are interwoven with his own amusing and poignant reflections on work, family, and Italian culture as the world around him shifts, at least temporarily, beyond recognition.”