Italo Calvino
1973
Around 145 pages
Italo Calvino always brings some magic to this List, which is much appreciated because let's face it: most of our authors are muggles.
In what I assume is a nod to Chaucer, Calvino presents a narrative where a group of travelers meet and swap stories. Only these characters find themselves unable to speak after passing through a magical forest, so they have to recount their tales using tarot cards.
Taking away the characters' ability to communicate is always a fun narrative technique, as we are forced to dissect all the non verbal ways we can connect with each other. This is a very short novel, so the concept doesn't have time to grate. And I really enjoyed the illustrations as well, usually if we have any drawings on this List, it's a penis.
I have to recommend this novel to my sister who is very into tarot, although I'm not sure she trusts me after the John Banville incident.
RATING: ****-
Interesting Facts:
Contains allusions to Ludovico Ariosto's Orlando Furioso.
UP NEXT: The Siege of Krishnapur by J.G. Farrell
1 comment:
I am a little nervous to read this, but I will give it a try. I had quite a time with Italo Calvino before, but I have recovered from the tedium of the Fairy Tale book of his, so I think I am ready.
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