Paperback, 260 pages
Published Oct. 23, 1982 by L&OD Key Porter.
If on a Winter's Night a Traveler is a marvel of ingenuity, an experimental text that looks longingly back to the great age of narration—"when time no longer seemed stopped and did not yet seem to have exploded." Italo Calvino's novel is in one sense a comedy in which the two protagonists, the Reader and the Other Reader, ultimately end up married, having almost finished If on a Winter's Night a Traveler. In another, it is a tragedy, a reflection on the difficulties of writing and the solitary nature of reading. The Reader buys a fashionable new book, which opens with an exhortation: "Relax. Concentrate. Dispel every other thought. Let the world around you fade." Alas, after 30 or so pages, he discovers that his copy is corrupted, and consists of nothing but the first section, over and over. Returning to the bookshop, he discovers the volume, which he thought …
If on a Winter's Night a Traveler is a marvel of ingenuity, an experimental text that looks longingly back to the great age of narration—"when time no longer seemed stopped and did not yet seem to have exploded." Italo Calvino's novel is in one sense a comedy in which the two protagonists, the Reader and the Other Reader, ultimately end up married, having almost finished If on a Winter's Night a Traveler. In another, it is a tragedy, a reflection on the difficulties of writing and the solitary nature of reading. The Reader buys a fashionable new book, which opens with an exhortation: "Relax. Concentrate. Dispel every other thought. Let the world around you fade." Alas, after 30 or so pages, he discovers that his copy is corrupted, and consists of nothing but the first section, over and over. Returning to the bookshop, he discovers the volume, which he thought was by Calvino, is actually by the Polish writer Bazakbal. Given the choice between the two, he goes for the Pole, as does the Other Reader, Ludmilla. But this copy turns out to be by yet another writer, as does the next, and the next.
Samoświadoma, krytyczna, dająca do myślenia. Sądzę, że dzięki czytaniu jej na studiach inaczej na nią patrzę. Zaryzykuję stwierdzeniem, że każdy czytelnik powinien ją przeczytać.
What a marvellous book! I wish I could remember whom or where it was recommended to me, a crisp high five is in order. But that sort of adds to the experience of If on a winter's night a traveller - & it is an experience - delving into chance & the absurd. What a turn of phrase this Italo Calvino has. Such a skilfully-wrought novel. Why haven't I heard of it, even in passing? I plan on reading it again & will be sad if it's immediately purged from my memory by some quirk of the universe or bureaucratic subterfuge. Or perhaps I won't, delightedly reading it for the first time then returning here to find my own review waiting for me.
2.5
Review to come
I can't really decide what I feel about this book. It seems to be equal parts esoteric points about reading and writing books on one hand, and masterfully executed writing tricks on the other. I both enjoyed it immensely and thought it was hard to read. All in all, four stars, I guess? I don't know.
A delightful puzzle of a book that had some excellent lines, and explored deep themes about reading and writing. The language was light and funny and insightful. While reading I so felt the urge to pick up my pen and attempt to write fiction myself — a sort of autonomous mimicry of the sort I only feel when reading the rarest of authors. Worth spending a couple of evenings with, and moreso if you have a book club to discuss the content with!
I know it's an odd book, but I love it. This is the third time I've read it. I feel like I need to schedule it every ten years or so, just for the way it makes me think about the nature of writing and reading; the relation between the two.
