The story is not in English.

I was taken aback by the query by some of my colleagues here. They seemed to find it quite strange that the story was not in English given that I was a native speaker of English. They were so looking forward to reading it, they said, and then…! The fact that we were in Italy, and more importantly, that we were in a small town where most people did not speak English, (and do not need to), did not seem pertinent to them. An American explained: “English is the international language. Everyone should be speaking it.” To not speak English is to be “uneducated”…

The story is not in English.

The story is about an historical Italian event, even if the story itself is fictional. To write it in a language other than Italian would seem perverso. Without the Italian context, it is hard to see how it would make much sense to an English person, even less so to an American.

The story is not in English.

The story is published in Casaprota, a small Italian town, with the aim of having the townspeople walk through their very familiar environment and engage with it slightly differently by reading a fictional story about it, seen through the eyes of a foreigner.

The story is not in English.

Later, when the story is published in book form, it will definitely include an English translation. The book is intended to accompany a walk around this beautiful town, that will be a walk that could be undertaken by anyone who happens to live here, or happens to visit. (A visit is highly recommended!) But until then…

The story is not in English.