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karol_castro's review against another edition
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
3.5
quakeherself's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
this book was so dense but the prose was beautiful i really wanted to love this book but it was a but of a slog when marco poli described some of the cities, while other descriptions were brilliant i loved the interactions between marco polo and kublai khan
khaliah's review against another edition
5.0
An absolutely lovely book. I don't think the English translation does it justice. This is the book that made me fall in love with Calvino. Some of the cities are more engaging than others, but I loved it just the same.
kashmiras's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
leo_seven's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
andreandrea's review against another edition
5.0
Questo capolavoro di Calvino è al contempo un esercizio di scrittura e un ricco ritratto della società odierna, che delle città fa il suo nido, inscritto nella cornice dell'orientale palazzo dell'imperatore Khan.
Tra sbuffi di morbido fumo, il narratore d'eccellenza Marco Polo descrive al Khan visioni di Città, facendo assaporare, osservare ed ascoltare approdi immaginari, ricordando al lettore che sta a lui il compito di dare vita ad ognuno di loro.
E il lettore stesso viene largamente ricompensato con ricordi ed emozioni, che solo un impeccabile scrittore sa fare emergere.
Allo stesso tempo le città ritraggono cenni della società, e delle persone che la formano, rammentandoci però che la vera città che abitiamo, è quella del nostro pensiero.
Tra sbuffi di morbido fumo, il narratore d'eccellenza Marco Polo descrive al Khan visioni di Città, facendo assaporare, osservare ed ascoltare approdi immaginari, ricordando al lettore che sta a lui il compito di dare vita ad ognuno di loro.
E il lettore stesso viene largamente ricompensato con ricordi ed emozioni, che solo un impeccabile scrittore sa fare emergere.
Allo stesso tempo le città ritraggono cenni della società, e delle persone che la formano, rammentandoci però che la vera città che abitiamo, è quella del nostro pensiero.
mushababy's review against another edition
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
sunn_bleach's review against another edition
challenging
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Fantastic exploration(!) of semiotics, meaning, and combinatorics through literature. Over 55 short prose vignettes, Marco Polo speaks with Kublai Khan about fantastic cities with a focus on a particular quirk or interpretation of that city. Each city is categorized in one of several themes (Thin Cities, Cities & Desire, Cities & The Sky, etc.), some of which are more steeped in the semiotic discussion, others are allegorical, and still others are simply surreal.
My copy is less than 170 pages, but I easily read 300+ over two weeks given I was so enchanted by each of Calvino's stories. I would read one of the nine sections, pause, and then go back two sections to reread and rethink. Fantastic little book that's utterly inspiring not only for fantastic places but as a way to simply view your city (whatever that might mean) in new contexts.
My copy is less than 170 pages, but I easily read 300+ over two weeks given I was so enchanted by each of Calvino's stories. I would read one of the nine sections, pause, and then go back two sections to reread and rethink. Fantastic little book that's utterly inspiring not only for fantastic places but as a way to simply view your city (whatever that might mean) in new contexts.
Only caveat is that Calvino uses a similar theme of "two cities existing at once" for probably ten of the passages. The book is so strongly organized by patterns and combinations that I found this to be almost a frustrating red-herring in it not really amounting to anything other than a conceit that Calvino must have liked. Kinda wish he just had a category called "Twin Cities".
As I read, I kept thinking about my time in the Sierra Nevada and similar interpretations or conceits with mountains. Like, one of Calvino's stories is about how the archetype you have of a profession in a city makes you collapse any memories of people doing that skill into the single person (i.e. I saw ten stonemasons but I only remember one), kind of like a twisted platonic ideal. It made me think of seeing quaking aspen in the northern Sierra; I can't tell you about one particular aspen, but instead all the ones I've walked past coalesce in my mind as the memory of aspen.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Suicide and Ableism
k_shanahan's review against another edition
5.0
I understand and love this book even more each time I re-read it.
sliqmiq's review against another edition
challenging
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0