The publishing event of the year, the book that managed to scare the Mafia, is the work of the 29-year-old Neapolitan Roberto Saviano. "Gomorrah" is the mural of Naples, a city where organized crime dominates and grows uncontrollably. In this captivating narrative, which masterfully combines literature with the codes of journalistic reporting, the Camorra is presented as a hydra that extends beyond illegal operations, but also influences the hearts of people, turning their lives into hell: the Mafia affects all collective and individual events, undermining the already fragile democracy.

The author, after wandering the streets of Naples on his Vespa, realized that the activities of the Mafia are not only related to the arms and drug trade. Its operations cover areas such as construction companies and high fashion clothing counterfeits, while its investments extend worldwide. The narrator, who adopts both the perspective of a personally involved individual and the detached gaze of a scholarly researcher, reveals how the Camorra recruits its members, conducts its operations, and uses women and family as extensions of its activities. Additionally, he describes in terms of political economy the expansionist financial logic of the families of Naples and Caserta, from Secondigliano to Casal di Principe.

Roberto Saviano embarked on his research in the underworld of the Camorra (the Mafia of the Naples region) with the youthful ambition of writing a great book. Today, almost two years after its Italian publication, "Gomorrah" has sold one and a half million copies in Italy alone, has been translated into 33 languages, and is considered one of the most important books of the decade. The author has gained global recognition, but has lost his freedom, as he has been under police protection since 2006, following an order from the Italian President of the Republic, Giorgio Napolitano. Roberto Saviano has written a work that grabs the reader by the throat and drags them into an abyss where no imagination can reach.