Carlo Ginzburg is known as a historian of medieval microhistory, witches, sorcerers and inquisitors. This time he presents a book about a 20th century event. As in his well-known work The Cheese and the Worms, this story, which begins in the Italian "hot autumn" of 1968, is about a trial. The trial, among others, of his friend Adriano Sofri accused of being one of the masterminds of the murder of Commissario Luigi Calabresi in 1972. «There are two reasons for him to write these pages. First, because Sofri has been his friend for 30 years and he wants to show that the accusation is unfounded. The second reason is to point out the "intricate and ambiguous" relations between the judge and the historian. That is to say, to inquire into the methodological implications of a series of elements common to both professions, such as evidence and testimony… Can history be made from a single source of information? These are the mistakes that judges and historians make, some sentence, others interpret. Oral testimony cannot be the only evidence, the only proof. The truth of the historian and of the judge is to ask oneself what really happened, what data are accurate? In the course of time, memories become confused, contradictions, forgetfulness, the subjectivities of the witness are accentuated when reconstructing the facts. But, contrary to the deviations of historians, those of judges have more serious immediate consequences. "They can lead to the condemnation of innocent individuals”.» (Nélida Bonaccorsi)

«This book had been written fifteen years ago to influence the outcome of the appeals process by argumentatively dismantling the alleged evidence adduced against Adriano Sofri. He has since been finally convicted; but the arguments aimed at proving his innocence remain. I believe that many readers, having reached the end of this book, will be astounded to see on what foundations - soggy, not to say nonexistent - a judgment of guilt was arrived at». (from the author’s Preface)

«Italy's foremost historian, Carlo Ginzburg – and the publication of his book – has rocked the foundations of the Italian legal system ... Ginzburg is the type of historian who revels in detective work ... he has sleuthed and deduced with tenacity and the finely tuned sensory apparatus of a bloodhound.» Financial Times