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Gabriele Romagnoli. Navi in bottiglia. Milan. Mondadori. 1993. 203 pages. L.28,000.
Navi in bottiglia (Ships in Bottles) is a collection of brief stories with an established format: each one consists of twenty-nine lines followed by a thirtieth which upends the situation entirely. One can read each of the 101 selections trying to preguess Gabriele Romagnoli and appreciate the sometimes cathartic, sometimes surprise endings. The conclusions seesaw between the two poles of fantasy and reality. Together, a pattern emerges. Twenty-nine lines serve to create a character's hopes, aspirations, or frustrations, which are then usually dashed in the thirtieth. Topics touched upon include corrupt politicians, bought athletes, macabre situations taken from newspaper accounts, faithful and unfaithful husbands...