Italian / Italy
L' isola del Muto
(The Island of the Mute)
Sgardoli, Guido
(text)
Cinisello Balsamo (Milano): San Paolo, [2018]. – 359 p.
(Series: Narrativa San Paolo ragazzi)
ISBN 978-88-922-1363-0
Island | Lighthouse keeper | Family saga
Reading age: 14+
White Ravens issue: 2019
The plot of this complex family saga spans 150 years, from 1816 to 1966, with a glimpse forward to 2016. The protagonist is Arne Bjørneboe, a Norwegian sailor severely disfigured in a battle at sea. As a result of the tragic accident, the despairing man isolates himself from others and stops talking. He finds new courage and his vocation as a lighthouse keeper on an inhospitable little island, which is named the “Island of the Mute” in his honour. Some of his descendants decide to leave the island, some stay and take over his job, until the lighthouse becomes fully automated. Detailed description brings the variety of remarkable personalities among this group of men, women, and children to life. Every character has a distinct role to play in the novel. Technological modernisation and social progress are just as masterfully portrayed as the island’s unwavering conditions. Author Guido Sgardoli artfully combines adventure and historical fiction in his novel.