Reviews

The Distance of the Moon by Italo Calvino

emily_wigham's review against another edition

5.0

This is a beautiful collection of short stories, and the first of Calvino's writing that I have read. I was turned on to him by a dear friend, quite aghast that I had never laid eyes on the writings of this wonderful man. After reading this collection I can understand why. Each of these tales intertwine the pure joy of childhood stories, with the awe-inspiring intellect of physics and philosophy. While "The Distance of the Moon" seems juvenile in its idea of the moon being a frequented location, reached by the simple balancing of a ladder upon its surface, it offsets this fantastical notion with a true concern for physical nuances like gravity, and the moon's pull and movement. "Without Colours" forces one to face both the scientific idea of a world without atmosphere, and so a world without colour, and the concept of incompatibility between two lovers. "Implosion" is philosophy, pure and simple. "To explode or to implode - said Qfwfq - that is the question: whether 'tis nobler in the mind to expand one's energies in space without restraint, or to crush them into a dense inner concentration and, by ingesting, cherish them" (p.51). One is faced with the moral and existential dilemma of choosing annihilation by either im- or exploding, but hinges, in the end, on the idea that one depends on the other. To implode is explode as another, somewhere else entirely. The experience of reading this collection, however brief, was extraordinary in its profundity.

lobster_11's review against another edition

inspiring mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

marie_claire's review against another edition

I really want to like Italo Calvino but somehow I find his writing to be such a slog, even when it’s just 61 pages long

electrickid's review against another edition

5.0

This was a wonderful chance for me to try out Calvino and now, after just dipping my toe into his work, I am utterly enamoured. What a whimsical visionary, serve me up his imagination for breakfast.

caitlinbq's review against another edition

3.0

The writing of this book was beautiful but I just didn’t connect with the story.

I still recommend as it is beautifully written

lisanzio's review against another edition

4.0

«i shall implode, collapse inside the abyss of myself, towards my buried centre, infinitely.»

morganek's review against another edition

slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

2.0

gwenmdb's review against another edition

5.0

This book is 98% magical prose that I wish I could have floating around my brain forever and 2% troubling misogyny. I really wish that 2% would go away and stop bothering me so much. I guess that calculation comes out to 4.9 stars out of 5.

valentinasink's review against another edition

3.0

Somehow I feel like I missed all the metaphors and just read it head-on. This was weird but also really fun and kinda romantic at the same time in some weird way. It's fun to read because imagining everything that is going on is the best part.

sungyena's review against another edition

emotional reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0