Le otto montagne by Paolo Cognetti (2016)
Level recommended: Fluency
Where to purchase: Libreria Pino
BOOK PLOT
Pietro grows up in Milan but spends his summers in Grana, a mountain village in Valle d’Aosta. There he meets Bruno, a local boy from a family of herders. A deep friendship blossoms between the two, even as their lives take different paths: Bruno remains in the valley, working as a herder and mason, while Pietro moves to the city, becomes a filmmaker, and travels the world.
After Pietro’s father dies, he inherits a ruined mountain cabin, which he and Bruno rebuild together — rekindling their bond. But life brings joys and hardships: Bruno marries Lara and has a daughter, yet his farm later collapses under debt. Pietro, often away in Nepal, tries to support his old friend, who withdraws more and more into solitude.
The story ends with Bruno’s tragic fate, lost to the mountains that shaped both their lives.