Quiet Chaos

On the shores of the Mediterranean, exhausted from an afternoon of surfing,Pietro Paladini is shaken out of his stupor by a distant noise. “Over there!”he cries to his brother, Carlo, sunning beside him. “Over there!”

So begins the adventure that will tear a hole in Pietro’s life. For while he and hisbrother struggle to save two drowning swimmers, a tragedy is unfolding down theroad at his summer cottage. Instead of coming home to a hero’s welcome, Pietrois greeted by the flashing lights of an ambulance, the wide-eyed stare of his youngdaughter, Claudia, and the terrible news that his fiancée, Lara, is dead.

Life must go on. Or does it Pietro, a true iconoclast, has to find his own way.When he drops Claudia off for the first day of school, he decides to wait outsidefor her all day, and then every day. To protect her. To protect himself. To wait forthe heavy fist of grief to strike. But as the days and weeks go by, the small parkinglot in front of the school becomes his refuge from the world as well as the placewhere family and colleagues come to relieve their own suffering—among them, thewoman he rescued from the waves. And Pietro plunges deeper into the depths ofhis life before seeing the simple truth before his eyes.

Sandro Veronesi makes art of every detail, creating a mosaic of humor, hope,profound insight, and emotional resonance. Quiet Chaos is an unprecedented portrayalof a life set adrift by death.

“"Mr. Veronesi sustains the opening scene's excitement as he stirs a psychological ferment....The overpowering sense of fragility that touches Pietro and Claudia is superbly conveyed by translator Michael F. Moore. Let's hope more novels from Mr. Veronesi's back catalog join 'Quiet Chaos' in translation." -- Wall Street Journal "Dazzling.... Like a literary Fellini, Veronesi brings to life the larger-than-life human comedy as only an Italian would dare, uproariously funny in the face of stark tragedy. It's a reading experience not to be missed." -- Shelf Awareness "[An] absorbing second novel." -- Publishers Weekly”

"Mr. Veronesi sustains the opening scene's excitement as he stirs a psychological ferment...The overpowering sense of fragility that touches Pietro and Claudia is superbly conveyed by translator Michael F. Moore. Let's hope more novels from Mr. Veronesi's back catalog join 'Quiet Chaos' in translation." -- Wall Street Journal "Dazzling... Like a literary Fellini, Veronesi brings to life the larger-than-life human comedy as only an Italian would dare, uproariously funny in the face of stark tragedy. It's a reading experience not to be missed." -- Shelf Awareness "[An] absorbing second novel." -- Publishers Weekly

Sandro Versonesi was born in Prato, Italy in 1959. Though novelist, essayist, and journalist, Veronesi earned a degree in architecture at the University in Florence before pursuing a career in writing. His seventh novel, THE FORCE OF THE PAST, won the Viareggio-Repaci Prize and the Campiello Prize and was a Zerilli-Marimo finalist. Sandro Veronesi now lives in Rome. In 2005, he won the Stega Prize for CAOS CALMO (QUIET CHAOS).

On the shores of the Mediterranean, exhausted from an afternoon of surfing,Pietro Paladini is shaken out of his stupor by a distant noise. "Over there!"he cries to his brother, Carlo, sunning beside him. "Over there!" So begins the adventure that will tear a hole in Pietro's life. For while he and hisbrother struggle to save two drowning swimmers, a tragedy is unfolding down theroad at his summer cottage. Instead of coming home to a hero's welcome, Pietrois greeted by the flashing lights of an ambulance, the wide-eyed stare of his youngdaughter, Claudia, and the terrible news that his fianc

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