Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.05 AVERAGE
4.05 AVERAGE
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
adventurous
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I tried, I really tried, and this is not the first time I've tried with Calvino. My spouse (a philosopher of language) adores Calvino; his erstwhile dissertation director (the same make) counts this as one of his favorite books. I completely get why *they* like him, and this; he's practically made up of thought experiments wrapped in crystalline language, perfect for minds who thrive on turning over abstract ideas.
I did okay to about the halfway point - five stars to the halfway point, seriously - and then the form really began to wear on me. I continued to appreciate the shifting framing dialogues of Kublai Khan and Marco Polo, even as I struggled to keep on with the cities.
But one of the problems with Calvino for me is that it's so easy to come to a natural stopping point and to stop, and I kept doing that, and it took me five days to get through this when it was really only a couple hours worth of reading. Paradoxically, I think I might have done better if I tried to read this incredibly slowly, like one city a day, one city a week, but I didn't have the patience to leach it out like that.
I did okay to about the halfway point - five stars to the halfway point, seriously - and then the form really began to wear on me. I continued to appreciate the shifting framing dialogues of Kublai Khan and Marco Polo, even as I struggled to keep on with the cities.
But one of the problems with Calvino for me is that it's so easy to come to a natural stopping point and to stop, and I kept doing that, and it took me five days to get through this when it was really only a couple hours worth of reading. Paradoxically, I think I might have done better if I tried to read this incredibly slowly, like one city a day, one city a week, but I didn't have the patience to leach it out like that.
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
adventurous
informative
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
No
pretty stunning, when considered from a prosaic stance. the metaphors are deep and rich, and i appreciated all the love and time spent in the descriptions. for me, there wasn’t a lot of thematic depth or deeper poignance beyond the breathtaking surface, but deeply enjoyable and well written anyhow. i read this in entirely in a cafe in venice; i think that definitely enhanced the reading experience as calvino describes the wonders of cities that look *especially* similar to italy.
This book was magic for me. Read it as part of an English class in college and have since the read every Italo Calvino book because of this one. Reading this book was like experiencing an MC Escher drawing for the first time (I couldn't stop looking at it and wanted to examine it from every angle). The book also caused me to look at Marco Polo and Kublai Khan with a more open mind than what I'd learned about them in my history classes. They went from being one dimensional to fascinating figures whose flaws dominated their legacies but who were also full of dreams and adventure.
I only wish I could read this in Italian. Given the vastness of his imagination, I can only guess how much is lost in translation.
I only wish I could read this in Italian. Given the vastness of his imagination, I can only guess how much is lost in translation.
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
didn’t get into it the cities random descriptions
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced