Le Otto Montagne - Leaving Cert 2026

Those who create the syllabus for the Irish Leaving Certificate have taken a step in order to modernise the paper. Le Otto Montagne by Paolo Cognetti is one of two options that students have in the Prescribed Literature section of the exam.

Le Otto Montagne was published in 2016 and is much more relatable to students than the 2025 options of Sciascia’s A ciascuno il suo and Calvino’s Marcovaldo. Despite their standing as two of Italy’s foremost writers of the twentieth century, their language is complicated for Irish students to fully grasp, in my opinion.

Le Otto Montagne was adapted into a film of the same name in 2022 that I recommend students watch before undertaking the (in some cases) daunting task of reading the whole book in Italian.

With my students we go through the key parts of the book together, and I encourage an independent approach in order to have students completely prepared with what can be asked on the Leaving Cert paper. Get in touch here to find out about beginning classes.