The first book in this year’s challenge is an Italian one. It was a present from my oldest friend when she came to visit last year and what a lovely surprise it turned out to be.
‘Magari domani resto’, loosely translated as ‘maybe tomorrow I’ll stay’, follows a period in the life of Luce (Light) a struggling lawyer, newly single, with a dysfunctional family and a job she doesn’t like in a Napoli she thinks she wants to escape from. Life is funny sometimes and you can’t but fall for her honesty and depth and humour, for her old philosophical neighbour for the kid that enters her life and his naive mother and the travelling French boyfriend and her fight for a better life…
It is a delightful, feel good book that will leave you with a smile. I don’t know if it’ll ever be translated in English, but keep an eye out because if it does it’s a lovely read.
The author is an ex lawyer, born and bred in Naples – and younger than me, as the whole world seem to be at the moment – and I’ve just discovered that his first book is indeed available in English and it’s called ‘The temptation to be happy’ (for example here). It was published in 2015 and I’ve put it down as a possible for that year. I know you should choose a book by its title but….
The current list looks like this. I need more suggestions people!! Don’t make me do all the hard work… geesh, call yourself friends?
The barely updated list (two books added) is as follows:
2018
2017 – Magari domain resto (Lorenzo Maroni)
2016 – Upstream (Mary Oliver) currently reading
2015 – La tentazione di essere felici (Lorenzo Marone)
2014 – Storia della bambina perduta (Elena Ferrante)
2013 – Careless people (Sarah Churchwell)
2012
2011 – The Paris Wife (Paula McLain)
2010 – Salar the Salmon (Henry Williamson)
2009 – Let the gread world spin (Colum McCann)
2008 – The White Tiger (Aravind Adiga)
2007
2006
2005 – Never let me go (Kazuo Ishiguro)
2004 – The Sunday Philosophy Club (Alexander McCall Smith)
2003
2002 – Everything is illuminated (Jonathan Safran Foer)
2001 – American Gods (Nail Gainmand)
2000 – Coram Boy (Jamila Gavin)
1999
1998
1997 – Paradise (Toni Morrison)
1996
1995
1994
1993
1992
1990
1989
1988
1987 – Norwegian Wood (Haruki Murakami)
1986
1985 – Always Coming Home (Ursula Le Guin)
1984
1983
1982
1981
1980
1979
1978
1977
1976
1975
1974
1973
1972
1971
1970
1991- Regeneration (Pat Barker)
while you're ahead... 
Great project. Try “Housekeeping” by Marilynne Robinson for an early 1980s read. It’s much more than the title suggests
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