Usually, I like to classify good books in two main categories:
- Well written books with an interesting texture; they provide the reader with all the details leaving no much space to the reader fantasy and imagination.
- Books in my second category don’t provide many details, they put reader’s mind at work in a new dimension. They use words and the power of words to help the reader to imagine place, people and to discover new ideas, emotions, and feelings. Those are my favorite books.
Yesterday by Ágota Kristof belongs to the second category. It is written in a very essential style, using a the minimal set of words, no visual details, no unnecessary detail. Not a single paragraph can be removed from the book, neither a single word, without destroying it. If, like me, you believe that reading a book is and should be a different experience than watching a movie, this book is for you. The few words of “Yesterday” can stimulate and induce you to discover new sensations, new emotions, and unknown places of your mind. Definitely a very good book.
Franco Folini 