It is set mainly in Mandello where the Villa del Giardino del Tiglio stands, but it also talks about the nearby towns of Abbadia, Lierna and Fiumelatte. We are talking about the book recently published by the famous actor – and recently also writer – Gabriel Garko, written together with Gino Saladini, forensic doctor and criminologist, as well as an appreciated author of detective novels who has appeared on national TV channels several times.
“The lime garden” is the title of the book, in which it emerges how Gabriel Garko (also applauded in the recent Mediaset drama “If I could say goodbye”), was won over by the Lecco branch of the lake. The book published by Baldini and Castoldi – La Nave di Teseo, recently received the Città di Cattolica literary prize as book of the year.
The plot
The novel tells the story of Edoardo Dalla Valle, professor of aesthetic philosophy in Rome. In the past he was a guest on television shows due to his positions against homosexuality, but his beliefs distanced him from the rainbow family that his son Federico built with her husband Paul. Until he didn’t recognize his nephews Luca and Matteo born through surrogacy. The professor still maintains a good relationship with his eldest daughter Alfa, a well-known influencer. Edoardo suffers from Alzheimer’s, to the point of wandering confused and disappearing. Will he be able to mend the threads of memory, which seemed to be torn forever?
“Places of exceptional beauty”
Reading this book will answer various questions and will help us find our places again: the events are set mainly in Mandello where the villa of the Giardino del Tiglio stands, then ranging to the neighboring Abbadia Lariana and Lierna, as well as the locality of Fiumelatte in Varenna, the pearl of Lecco Lake Como. Reading the book, the frames of a possible future film already flow, shot and told through locations defined by the two authors as “of exceptional beauty”. We interviewed Saladini, asking him how the idea for this work was born and why he chose Mandello and its surroundings.
The interview
How did the idea of this book and of writing it together come about? “The idea for this book was born during a trip on the occasion of the presentation of Gabriel Garko’s biography – Andata e return – published by Nave di Teseo. During this car journey he told me a story telling me if we wanted to write a screenplay together. According to my point of view, I told him that it would be better to write a novel. Gabriel, accepting my proposal, started the co-writing of this text. Furthermore, we also came up with the idea of dividing the tasks, to have a more objective vision of what we were talking about. So, I, who am heterosexual, adopted the homosexual roles and he adopted the heterosexual roles. We obviously overcame the exchange of roles in an extremely effective way , to overcome the stereotypes connected to them”.
The presentation of the book took place in the Chamber of Deputies. A comment on this moment? “Important and unexpected. Summoned by the Culture commission, they wanted us to present this work to the Chamber of Deputies. A book that the commission itself recognized in its contents as elements of discussion and extremely delicate themes that were worth discussing. These, the rainbow families, the pregnancy, in quotes surrogate, the family relationship between an apparently homophobic father. A story that concerns new families, in a world that is changing. To say – I accept it – is banal and reductive.
Why did you choose to set some parts of the book on the Lecco branch of Lake Como, with explicit references to local towns and places? In fact, you two authors live in central Italy… “I am very attached to Lake Lecco. Thanks to my friend Giovanni Favero with a house in Lierna, I had the opportunity to see these wonderful places. I am particularly attached to Mandello del Lario, also for having, years ago, brought some shows with Giovanni including ‘The Way of St. James’ which I consider one of my most important. I also like the other places visited with Gabriel Worldwide”.
Other dreams in your drawer? “First of all, the idea of being able to make a film of it ourselves. A cinematic transposition of ‘The Lime Garden’ and perhaps write another novel, still kept in the drawer, postponed until the long wave of success of this book is over, today much requested and read”. (Thanks to Alberto Bottani for his collaboration)
