It is the summer of 1954, GIACOMO NEF is eleven years old and with the two older brothers he lives by his paternal grandparents DAGHè, on the slopes of the Col di Lana, in the Belluno Dolomites.
"Three houses, three barns, three families".
THE CHILDREN ARE ORPHANS, AND THE ELDERLY CAPOFAMIGLIAS TREATS THEM HARSHLY AND HARSHLY, ESPECIALLY THE YOUNGEST. In fact, his grandfather is convinced that Giacomo was born out of a relationship of his daughter-in-law in time of war and punishes him at every opportunity, locking him in the room of wild apples. There the little boy spends his time carving wood and dreaming of adventure, the exploits of famous climbers or comic book heroes, and the adventure runs towards him one late August evening.
As a terrible storm approaches, Giacomo is sent by his grandfather to the Bosch Negger to retrieve a forgotten bill in the morning. While the thunders seem to want to rip the sky, in the light of a lightning he discovers near the tool the body of a man hanging from a tree. THE HANGED MAN IS ON HIS BACK, AND HE, TERRIFIED, RUNS AWAY.
Throughout his life Giacomo will try to melt a mystery that seems to be linked to the life of the village, with its ancestral rites imbued with magical elements and popular beliefs. MATTEO RIGHETTO DEEPLY KNOWS THE ARCHAIC WORLD OF THE MOUNTAINS - VERY HARD AND AT THE SAME TIME ALIVE OF SCENTS, FLAVORS, DIALECT AND LEGENDS - AND RETURNS IT IN HIS MOST MATURE AND PRESSING NOVEL. READING IT IS A NIGHT THING IN THE WOODS, WITH MY HEART IN MY THROAT.