This book by Italo Calvino is one of the most delightful books I've ever read. It's a lot of fun for those who don't like reading one genre over and over again. It is also a lot of fun for those who liked to be included in the story. It is written in first person - with references to second person, and has a number of great themes in it that, from which, I am going to have to pick just one to write about.
I found this book whilst browsing in the Waterstones on Brum High Street - I also saw that it was Calvino's birthday on that day and I was looking directly at this book. Almost like fate.
Characters:
My favourite character was the narrator. The journey through romance, detective fiction, adventure etc. that we go through with the narrator is unbelievably descriptive and always has a different main running theme in it. I liked it a lot.
Themes:
My favourite theme was reading. There are a number of references made to reading, to the reader and to reader relations (especially at the end). I really liked it - of course, as I like reading. I also like it when the book knows that I'm reading it. It's like if Robert Fischer were to discover they were actually performing inception on him the whole time.
Storyline:
The end of the book was the best for me. The very final chapter was amazing - very witty and quite satisfying. I'm not going to tell you what the ending is - but when you read the whole book, the ending is very, very satisfying. Kind of like popping bubblewrap.
Verdict:
I give this book 9
100% for characters: I loved the narrator - sometimes it can come across as aggressive if you use first person too often - but it was done just right here.
100% for themes: I loved the various themes that linked to different genres -but my favourite theme was reading and reader-relations
100% for storyline: That ending was one of the most satisfying endings in the world.
No comments:
Post a Comment