I picked up Perfection by Vincenzo Latronico because of the cover – hot pink, and beautifully designed, it drew my eye immediately.
Which is fitting, because this is a book all about image.
It’s the story of Anna and Tom, two trendy digital natives living in Berlin in an Insta-worthy apartment. Creating beautiful online identities for their clients with the perfect balance of trendy fonts and colours, the couple is perfectly happy partying in their culture-rich city with other young professionals – for a while at least.
As time goes on, Anna and Tom party less, their once-thrilling experimentation starts to bore them, and even their trips away aren’t as stimulating as they once were. As the couple’s fun lifestyle starts to fray, they begin to search desperately for a deeper meaning in their picture-perfect existence.
Latronico writes with such ease, and his prose is succinct but descriptive – it could just as easily be the copy for a chic lifestyle magazine. The way he writes perfectly underlines the hollow lives of his central characters.
It’s difficult to get to know Anna and Tom, which is the point of this novel. They’re so defined by how their existence looks that the reader is kept at a distance.
This book is short but so thought-provoking. I’d recommend it for anyone who chooses their book club’s reads, as there will be lots to discuss.
You can pick up your copy of Perfection by Vincenzo Latronico here.
Cherie lives, works, and reads in beautiful Tasmania – the green island gem below Australia known for its gorgeous landscape and beautiful wildlife. She holds multiple academic qualifications in English, journalism, and fine art theory, and has worked in writing, editing, and communications roles for more than a decade. Most importantly, she has a deep love for books that began as soon as she learned how to read.
Old, new, any genre – for Cherie, reading is about as vital as breathing. She is interested in sharing books that move, excite, and compel, so others can share the joy of a truly great read. While she reads across most genres, her favourite is literary fiction. Particularly anything by Margaret Atwood, Ottessa Moshfegh, Kate Atkinson, Elizabeth Berg, Ann Patchett, and Anne Tyler.
Cherie frequents Tasmania’s beautiful boutique book shops as well as scouring secondhand shops for books to add to her extensive home library. Catch up with her on LinkedIn and on Instagram.
