Agostino was a short read, but one that leaves a lot to think about. I think it’s more than your usual coming-of-age story. It’s one of those reads where the writing coaxes you to keep going even though you’re lowkey really weirded out. It actually reminded me a lot of Proust, in the sense that a lot of the emotional tension going on circles back to the mother figure in both of these books.
To start, I would argue that Agostino’s relationship with his mother was definitely not normal. You can sort of feel it right from the beginning. His willingness to show her off stems more from his innocent love and admiration for her. He clearly loves her dearly and refers to her as “his mother”. However, pretty quickly, the narration shifts and she becomes “the mother,” and at one point Agostino reduces her even further to “just a woman”.
“She’s a woman, nothing more than a woman” (pg. 44)
Even when he still loves her, the attachment feels obsessive in a way that isn’t normal for a regular mother-son relationship.
Once that private world with his mother starts falling apart, his developing relationships with the others become more central. This is where the gang of boys comes in. Despite their verbal (and physical) mistreatment of him, Agostino finds himself going back to them again and again. He wants their approval. He wants to understand what they understand. And he doesn’t really have anyone else to turn to because his mother is distracted (looking at you, Renzo) and emotionally unavailable. In fact, the book captures something very real and raw about puberty. Your feelings get unexplainably intense, and suddenly, the people around you have way more influence than they used to.
And it’s not just puberty that causes Agostino to think and act the way that he does. The moment he meets Berto and the gang, we’re suddenly reminded that Agostino is no normal boy—he’s rich. He’s sheltered in a way that shows in everything, in how he talks, what he knows, what he’s embarrassed by, what shocks him. The other boys understand sex, money, and power in a blunt way because they’ve been around it. When the boys mock his wealth and ask about his house and his lifestyle, it’s a reminder that he’s been protected from reality all this time. Perhaps that is why their approval matters so much to him. It’s not only about friendship, but it’s also about trying to catch up to a world he suddenly realizes he knows nothing about.
Overall, I found Agostino a pretty straightforward read. My discussion question for the week would be: Do you think Agostino actually wants to grow up, or does he just want to stop feeling left out and powerless?