"In these essays, Calvino is able to make the world alive and comprehensible for us -and magical." -San Francisco Chronicle
"One comes away from this collection of intellectually playful essays ... by Italy's foremost modern novelist ... inspired to go back and reread the body of his fiction in the light of his reflections on literature." -Christopher Lehmann-Haupt, The New York Times
In these widely praised essays Calvino reflects on literature as process, the great narrative game in the course of which writer and reader are challenged to understand the world. He discusses literature in relation to science, philosophy, and politics and analyzes aspects of the works of the great classical writers of the past. The collection concludes with tributes to contemporary writers: Eugenio Montale, Roland Barthes, and Marianne Moore.
From Calvino's criticism emerge many of the themes that are woven into his own work: the image of the city, cybernetics, myth and folktale, the heroic journey.
Calvino himself made the selection of pieces to be included in this volume. The literary interests and critical insights expressed here are an important contribution to an understanding of the uses of literature and to a comprehension of the work of a modern master.
Italo Calvino was one of Italy's greatest and most popular writers. His superb storytelling gifts earned him worldwide renown. Mr. Calvino died in 1985.
