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A review by smuds2
Invisible Cities by Italo Calvino
emotional
funny
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
UNFINISHED
REVIEW RATING SYSTEM - [ 1 = FELT DECEIVED, 2 = NOT WHAT I EXPECTED IN A BAD WAY BUT WASN'T A WASTE OF TIME, 3 = WHAT I EXPECTED FELT LIKE MY TIME WAS USED AS EXPECTED, 4 = PLEASANTLY SURPRISED, 5 = THINKING ABOUT IT MONTHS LATER ]
RULES : (1) can not give anything a 5 outright, must either be a re-read or a update to score, (2) can not give incremental ratings, except for 4.75 which is functionally a "revisit in case it is actually a 5", (3) I should always end with a "this leads me to think" of 2-3 ideas this book roused in me.
Christmas 2023:
Revised from a 2.75 to a 3.75 on my second read through a few months later. This time I read through looking at it more like poetry than a novel or story.
I think that drastically improves the experience.
2 things I got out of this reread:
-our history is just one version of events, no more or less preferable than any other. History is constantly moving forward, never static, and if you take too long imagining what your impact will be with an action, the context will have changed so much that it’s no longer relevant.
-people should believe they are all one, there is a lot of mirroring, a lot of one action in one person equals another action in another etc. in this way, we are all interconnected, and you can only view people at the top level, just like it doesn’t make sense to look at a city at a smaller unit than a city.
REVIEW RATING SYSTEM - [ 1 = FELT DECEIVED, 2 = NOT WHAT I EXPECTED IN A BAD WAY BUT WASN'T A WASTE OF TIME, 3 = WHAT I EXPECTED FELT LIKE MY TIME WAS USED AS EXPECTED, 4 = PLEASANTLY SURPRISED, 5 = THINKING ABOUT IT MONTHS LATER ]
RULES : (1) can not give anything a 5 outright, must either be a re-read or a update to score, (2) can not give incremental ratings, except for 4.75 which is functionally a "revisit in case it is actually a 5", (3) I should always end with a "this leads me to think" of 2-3 ideas this book roused in me.
Revised from a 2.75 to a 3.75 on my second read through a few months later. This time I read through looking at it more like poetry than a novel or story.
I think that drastically improves the experience.
2 things I got out of this reread:
-our history is just one version of events, no more or less preferable than any other. History is constantly moving forward, never static, and if you take too long imagining what your impact will be with an action, the context will have changed so much that it’s no longer relevant.
-people should believe they are all one, there is a lot of mirroring, a lot of one action in one person equals another action in another etc. in this way, we are all interconnected, and you can only view people at the top level, just like it doesn’t make sense to look at a city at a smaller unit than a city.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide