Emmaus

The Italy of Alessandro Baricco's "Emmaus" is one of stark contrasts: the secular and the pious, the rich and the poor, those with "a capacity for destiny" and those who "cannot afford it." And it's in all of the latter that we find our four protagonists: Bobby, the Saint, Luca, and the unnamed narrator--all devout Catholics, all from proud, struggling families, and all lusting after one hyper-sexual woman. Andre, a woman whose reckless exploits border on suicidal, leads these four friends from adolescence to manhood in a torrid and existentially confused mess of emotions.
Baricco's lucid prose moves effortlessly from the abstract to the specific, while his "Lolita"-esque beginning takes a sharp turn towards an unsettling world reminiscent of Bolano's best work. A brilliant portrait of the perils and uncertainties of youth and faith, "Emmaus" is a remarkable novel from one of the very best writers in Italy.