Sentimental Economy

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What to expect

From the Strega Prize–winning author of Story of My People comes an astute, multifaceted essay on the seismic shifts of 2020 and how he and people from all walks of life are adapting.

Attempting to make sense of the incredible upheaval of 2020—from the devastating impact of COVID-19 to the sudden loss of his father—Edoardo Nesi considers the changing global economy and its effect on our lives. He shares the stories of Alberto Magelli, a small textile entrepreneur; Livia Firth, a prominent advocate for sustainability; Elisa Martelli, a young Sangiovese winemaker; Enrico Giovannini, a leading economist and statistician; Rino Pratesi, a proud butcher from the heart of Tuscany; and more.

From the overworked to the unemployed, we’re all grappling with difficult questions about our current disorienting world: Will we ever feel healthy again, and what will it take to regain “normality”? What does progress mean today? Have science and technology let us down? What will the increased prevalence of remote working mean for our cities, and for our lifestyles generally? Deftly weaving together the personal and the economic, Nesi takes us on a fascinating journey to understanding.

Critics Review

  • “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.”

    AudioFile
  • “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.”

    Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
  • “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.”

    Publishers Weekly
  • “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.”

    Ryan Chapman, author of Riots I Have Known
  • “[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.”

    Wallis Wilde-Menozzi, author of Silence and Silences
  • “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.”

    James Attlee, author of Under the Rainbow

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