Set against the breathtaking backdrop of the Dolpo region, this narrative captures the author's transformative journey to a remote Himalayan landscape as he celebrates his 40th birthday. With a deep appreciation for nature and adventure, the author reflects on personal growth and the profound beauty of one of the world's most spectacular places. This heartfelt exploration intertwines themes of solitude, connection, and the allure of the mountains, inviting readers to experience the magic of the Himalayas through his eyes.
Paolo Cognetti Book order







- 2024
- 2022
From the author of international bestseller The Eight Mountains comes a story of love and community in the wild beauty of the Italian AlpsThe remote alpine village of Fontana Fredda lives by the seasons. These quiet, complex rhythms appeal to Fausto, who has left the city of Milan behind, and with it his relationship. He takes a job as chef in a little restaurant and entrusts himself to new beginnings.Silvia is also seeking change: her sights are on the glaciers where, she has read, climbing a thousand metres towards the sky is equivalent to travelling ten times the same distance to the north. She is in search of her personal North Pole.When Fausto and Silvia meet one night, their story begins: a tender story of love and renewal; of the community that sustains them; and of lives humbled by the implacable strength and beauty of the mountains.As intimate in focus as it is epic in scope, The Lovers is a luminous meditation on our quest to understand our place in one another's lives, and in the magnificence of the world around us.Praise for The Eight Mountains:'Exquisite... A rich, achingly painful story' Annie Proulx'Enchanting' Guardian'Brilliant' New York Times
- 2020
The narrative explores the theme of connection as Paolo Cognetti embarks on a transformative journey through the Himalayas. This beautifully crafted journal reflects on self-discovery and the human longing for meaningful relationships, offering readers a poignant look at the intersection of nature and personal growth. Through his experiences, Cognetti invites contemplation on the bonds that unite us all.
- 2020
Without Ever Reaching the Summit
- 128 pages
- 5 hours of reading
In this exquisitely written journal-turned-journey of self-discovery, author Paolo Cognetti examines our universal desire for connection through a voyage in the Himalayas. Why climb a mountain without ever reaching the summit? In 2017, Paolo Cognetti returned to Nepal, not to conquer the mountains but to journey through the high valleys of the Dolpo with a copy of Peter Matthiessen's The Snow Leopard in hand. Drawing on memories of his childhood in theAlps, Cognetti explored the roots of life in the mountains, truly getting to know the communities and the nature that forged this resilient, almost mythical region. Accompanying him was Remigio, a childhood friend who had never left the mountains of Italy, and Nicola, a painter he had recently met. Joined by a stalwart team of local sherpas, the trio started out in the remote Dolpo region of Nepal. From there, a journey of self-discovery shaped by illness, human connection, and empathy was born. Without Ever Reaching the Summit features line illustrations drawn by the author.
- 2019
The Wild Boy
- 176 pages
- 7 hours of reading
A young man escapes his painful past by retreating to the rustic comfort of the Italian Alps in this gorgeously wrought memoir from the internationally bestselling author of the “exquisite” (Annie Proulx) novel The Eight Mountains. When life in the city becomes too overwhelming for Paolo, he decides to take refuge high in the Italian mountains. Returning to the breathtaking Valle d’Aosta—known for its snowcapped mountain peaks—after a decade’s absence, he rediscovers a simpler life and develops deep human connections with two neighbors. In this stunning landscape, he begins to take stock of his life and consider what he truly values. With lyrical and evocative prose, The Wild Boy is a testament to the power of the natural world, the necessity of an ever-questioning mind, and the resilience of the human spirit.
- 2018
The Eight Mountains
- 272 pages
- 10 hours of reading
'Could Cognetti be the new Elena Ferrante?' Bookseller The international sensation that spent a year on the Italian bestseller list about two young boys who meet in the mountains every summer, and the men they grow up to become 'ENCHANTING' Guardian 'BRILLIANT' New York Times 'ABSORBING' Irish Times Pietro, a lonely city boy, spends his summers in a secluded valley in the Alps. There, surrounded by meadows and peaks, he begins to learn of his father's dreams and passions. There, too, he meets Bruno, the son of a local stonemason. As the pair run wild, they form a once-in-a-lifetime friendship. Then one year, the summer visits stop. Pietro is drawn to cities around the world. But the memory of the mountains never leaves him and, after his father dies, he returns in search of the freedom and camaraderie that he once knew. 'Exquisite... A rich, achingly painful story' ANNIE PROULX Winner of the 2017 Strega Prize, the Strega Giovani Prize and the Prix Medicis etranger