In 1978, Gianni Celati published this legendary and hilarious novel. On an Italian beach, Giovanni falls in love with a young German girl, and he follows her to the Hamburg of the Beatles during the 60s. Here is a wandering philosopher, a gentlemanly lover but with a hole in his shoe, a poor man who philosophizes with depth through simple words. This bombastic and charming novel offers torrential humor and picaresque adventures of love at first sight.