[. . .]
“Yes. His brother Ahmed.”
“Where is he?”
“I don’t know,” [. . . .]
“Her husband?”
[. . .]
“Just Francois’s father. A bad man.”
[. . .]
“My name is Aisha,” [. . .]
“Mine is Salvo,” [. . .]
81 five hundred million lire: About $300,000 at the time of the novel’s publication in 1998.
96 two hundred twenty thousand lire . . . three hundred eighty
thousand . . . one hundred seventy-seven thousand lire: Respectively, about $150, $200, and $95 at the time.
105 he was going out to the nearest tobacco shop: Tobacco products in Italy are distributed by the state monopoly and sold only in licensed shops, bars, and cafes.
107 when Montelusa was called Kerkent: The fictional Montelusa is modeled on the city of Agrigento (the ancient Agrigentum), called Girgenti by the Sicilians and Kerkent by the Arabs.
109 children’s late-morning snacks: Lunch in Italy isn’t usually eaten until one or one-thirty in the afternoon, and mothers often pack a snack for their children to quell their late-morning hunger.
121 torroncini: Marzipan pastries filled with pumpkin jam and covered with roasted almonds.
123 “the Lacapra case”: Lapecora means “the sheep,” while Lacapra means “the goat.”
2 9 5
N O T E S
124 pasta ’ncasciata: A casserole of pasta corta—that is, elbow macaroni, penne, ziti, mezzi ziti, or something similar—tomato sauce, ground beef, Parmesan cheese, and bechamel.
131 “By repenting . . . turning state’s witness against the Mafia”:
In Italy Mafia turncoats are called pentiti, “repenters,” and many people, like Montalbano, believe they are treated too leniently by the government.
131 calia e simenza: A snack food of chickpeas and pumpkin seeds, sometimes with peanuts as well.
136 “Is this” . . . “s’appelle?”: The French here translates as fol lows:
“Is this your uncle?”
“Yes.”
“What’s his name?”
[. . .]
“Ahmed?”
“Just Ahmed?”
“Oh, no. Ahmed Moussa.”
“And your mother? What’s her name?”
147 “nine hundred thousand”: At the time of the novel’s writing, about $500.
156 “Pippo Baudo”: A famous Italian television personality and master of ceremonies for a number of different variety shows.
159 No one must ever know that Inspector Montalbano was rescued
by the carabinieri. The carabinieri, considered not very intelligent in the popular imagination, are a national paramilitary police force. They and the local police forces are often in competition with each other.
162 “On Saturday”: Italian children attend school Monday through Saturday.
