Marcovaldo: or the Seasons in the City
by Italo Calvino
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 377)
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short-story
Read in July, 2006
Here's a book I knew I would like the minute I held it in my hot little hands. For one thing, it's short - 120 pages, fairly large print. For another, it's symmetrical - 20 stories, 5 for each season of the year. And finally, having read one story from it in a seasonal collection already, I knew it was both magical and sarcastic, a combination as golden as snide and abstract are shit. (Ok, it could be argued magical and sarcastic and snide and abstract are po-tay-to and po-tah-to, but let's n...more
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Read in April, 2008
recommends it for:
people who know what's good
dear italo calvino,
i would like to be able to live in this time and place that you are writing from. i would like to be able to know what it was like to be living in a place that was still struggling to reconcile the modern with the rural. i would like to understand what it was like to live poorly in a place and time like that. maybe it would not be that different to live that way today.
but moving to the heart of the matter, i want to know if marcovaldo is a sympathetic or comical charact...more
i would like to be able to live in this time and place that you are writing from. i would like to be able to know what it was like to be living in a place that was still struggling to reconcile the modern with the rural. i would like to understand what it was like to live poorly in a place and time like that. maybe it would not be that different to live that way today.
but moving to the heart of the matter, i want to know if marcovaldo is a sympathetic or comical charact...more
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Read in September, 2007
While not as well known as If on a Winter's Night a Traveler, Invisible Cities, or Cosmicomics, Marcovaldo equally exemplifies the peerless brilliance of Italo Calvino's creativity. The tale of Marcovaldo, a hapless laborer living with his family in an Italian city, unfolds over the course of twenty short stories and is set cyclically within the inexorable rhythm of the passing seasons. Marcovaldo's insatiable imagination and affinity for the simple intrigue of ever...more
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my first italo calvino, and it was difficult. i'm sure there is a lot i missed, reading it in italian, but what i did get was awesome. such a great idea for a book of short stories (they're all about one character--marcovaldo--and his awkward attempts to connect with the natural world around him), and so well written. his tone alternates between humorous and contemplative, with the result that you come away laughing and thinking--the two best things a book can compel you to do. i wish i could gi...more
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Read in January, 2008
This had been sitting on the shelf for a while, so I finally picked it up and got down to business. It's a very light read of short stories featuring a goofy guy with horribly bad luck. I'm not sure if there was supposed to be a moral to the stories (dreaming is impractical?) or if they're just meant to be entertaining. In any case, I enjoyed spending my train rides following Marcovaldo around a small northern Italian city while he chased rain clouds on his bicycle to feed his houseplant. You've...more
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Read in January, 2006
I loved this book. I picked it up one night after dinner and expected to read a chapter or two; then finished reading this in one sitting. Fantastic realism at it's best. Reminds me of the films by Jean-Pierre Jeunet. Touches on the beauty of the smaller wonders in life. My favorite chapter is the one where the kids all get the free soap samples and then, thinking they're on the lam from the police, dump it into the river, covering the city in bubbles. Great read.
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Has a copy to sell/swap
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Read in March, 2006
I have read these short stories several times in Italian- much better in the original language. At any rate, Calvino is critiquing cosumerism and the emphasis in the modern world on technology and machinery. "Marcovaldo at the supermarket" is cute but my favorite is "The Forest on the Superhighway."
Good, short reads.
Good, short reads.
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lovely set of stories starring Marcovaldo, a poor laborer with bad luck who still manages to find joy in his life. Italo Calvino is a wonderful writer who always amazes me with his attention to detail and his ability to establish Place. His little environmental and architectural details make me smile.
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Read in January, 2008
I feel like a use the adjective "delightful" too much when reminiscing on Calvino, but it's so apt! These stories are quite delightful and different than his stuff in T-Zero and Cosmicomics. There's a good chance I will reread these before I reread Cosmicomics...
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Read in May, 2002
One of Calvino's forgotten books, it is among my favorites. The stories of Marcovaldo, and his uncanny ability to find the beautiful in the quotidiana of urban life are sublime and heartening. In a manner of speaking, a manual for living.
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Read in January, 1997
A close friend shared her copy with me one summer while she visited Dubai. It served as an ideal replacement for her company. I find I turn to it often. Are you noticing a common thread amongst my favorites? Fiction and Philosophy!
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Poor, accident-prone Marcovaldo is my urban-dwelling role model. When processed though M's imagination, even the bleak fascist landscape that has had all the fun rung out of it is as full of promise as a brand new jungle gym.
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Read in December, 2007
what can i say for this book except that its a lot of fun, and the ending really tripped me out. this is the type of book you pick up if you want to quickly put a smile to your face. like this :)
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avalin ketabi ke az calvino khoondam va az hame ham bishtar khosham oomad,harchand zahere pichideye baghie ketabasho nadare.
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Hands down my favorite author. This work may be my favorite of his. The Poisoned Rabbit - oh my, just oh my.
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Read in June, 2007
There's a coin of arbitrary, yet substantial, value. Its face is Invisible Cities, and the reverse is this book.
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In fairness, I didn't finish it. So I could be wrong. But, in my opinion, definitely not his best book.
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bookshelves:
adult-books
Read in August, 2007
This was awesome- most of the stories are hilarious, but they are all really touching. Really good.
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Read in December, 2007
recommended to Jaime by:
Esther
so refreshingly random. i read this at esther's in nyc. how fun!
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