One Step to You (The Rome Novels #1)(95)
Here these writers were fundamental to me. I love to find out where the authors I love will take me. I tie their stories to people, to facts, a normal moment in everyday life. It is a real satisfaction for me to go out now in the States, given my love for great American literature, contemporary and otherwise, which I have always devoured. So often love is intertwined with the social issues of a complex, multicultural country, full of different influences, which therefore produces diverse, poignant, and always surprising books.
With One Step to You, I wrote the story I wanted to read. Two characters of today with two family stories only apparently different, but certainly similar in complications with parents and siblings. Two teenagers who unwittingly found themselves dealing with each other and who continued to choose each day against the opinion of practically everyone, because few have bet on their love. In there, you will find all my passion as a reader, the authors I loved and love.
Q: Rome has the “Moccia route,” where sentences from your books are written on the walls of the city. If we are lucky enough to travel to Rome, can we see three meters above the sky written?
A: Indeed you can. I passed by, just the other day, as I was cycling under the bridge in Corso Francia located in the northern part of Rome known as Roma Nord, which is where One Step to You, Two Chances with You, and Three Times You are set. Still today, under the bridge that takes you from Ponte Milvio to Labaro, heading north in Roma Nord, you can see the Tre metri sopra il cielo graffiti. Both in the movies and in my novels, the bridge in Corso Francia is in important love scenes and moments of our characters, as well as in the races.
Q: Step is a very cool character. Were you part of the cool kids growing up? Or were you studious like Babi?
A: Step is a very interesting and difficult character. My group of friends was a very miscellaneous group because I never liked to hang out with people I didn’t like just because they were cool. I used to spend time, and I still do, with special and worthy people with whom I feel we can share some meaningful time together.
I enjoyed studying things that amused me. I was no nerd; my graduation score in high school was high just because I was more mature than the average guy. At the exam, I debated about the ancient Greek authors I had to translate into Italian. Teachers were amused watching me criticize the school system and pointing out those authors’ different points of view. That’s how I got full marks.
I loved school because I was conscious it was the most beautiful and peaceful time of our lives, with very few problems, unlike the years that follow. I remember many of my schoolmates trying to squeeze two years into one in order to get to college sooner. I used to tell them, “Are you crazy? What for?” Why were they in so much of a hurry if time was passing by anyway? One must enjoy life with no rush and a certain dose of carefulness, savoring the beauty of each moment.
Q: There is a lot of violence in the book. Do you think this is a rite of passage for most young males? Do you think readers have been shocked by it?
A: Sometimes it’s inevitable, mostly during high school, as kids try to assert themselves in any way they can, which often leads to mistakes. That’s how the issue of bullying arises, the need for one to overshadow the other in order to find one’s place and be the best you can be.
I tried to write about how Step is full of anger and resentment toward his mother, something he found out at his own expense and a truth that he doesn’t want to admit or discuss with either his brother or his father. Step is angry toward life until he finds love.
My intention was to explain how love has the incredible ability to cure people of their anger. Love triumphs over violence. Hopefully this message reaches my readers, which can be an important answer to the whole issue.
Q: You convey a wonderful sense of freedom while riding motorcycles. Do you like to ride? Do you own a motorcycle that is a particular favorite?
A: I’m really fond of motorbikes. They allow you to wriggle between traffic and escape chaos easily and quickly, by visiting the coast, for instance. Motorbikes are freedom, wind, speed, and independence. I’ve been passionate about them since I was young.
I used to have a Honda 350, then a Honda 750, and now I navigate the city on my Honda 300. It’s my secret pleasure to get out at night, surrounded by silence, as I watch the moon high in the sky, illuminating the road. It’s wonderful to just drive slowly with no rush, with the low humming of the engine, breathing in the scent of the flowers, especially during this season just before summer begins. Every time, the fragrance of the night amazes me as if I forgot it…I love rediscovering it again and again.
Q: One of the best action scenes takes place at the Greenhouse. Is the Greenhouse a place that exists in real life? Did you ever attend any illegal races while you were growing up?
A: The Greenhouse really existed. When I was young, I used to watch illegal street races. The place is named after a dip along the road where riders can pick up speed very easily. They could reach two hundred kilometers per hour, and sadly there were lots of accidents. Both sides of the road were covered with flowers in memory of those who had lost their lives. That’s why we called it the Greenhouse; it was packed with flowers. I never took part in a race; kids under fourteen years old weren’t allowed to. Only the older ones, like sixteen and up—a few years make a huge difference at that age. Despite all this, I’ve been a huge fan of those races, and every time I could, I escaped my home to go and watch them.