Italy may seem like the most European of countries. Its capital was that of an empire that encompassed all but the remotest corners of the continent. Italy gave us the Renaissance and the foundations of modern western culture. But Italy is more and more, is eternally deceptive; a country in which much is said by means of symbols, or simply left unsaid. So, with the possible exception of the last, the book that follows could scratch at the reassuring surface of Italian life to get at the infinitely more fascinating reality below. Enjoy the reading. [Project passion done by Luisa Meloni]