A difficult book to read. Not for everyone. It feels as though it was written for therapeutic reasons, an act of revenge, a rant that should have beenA difficult book to read. Not for everyone. It feels as though it was written for therapeutic reasons, an act of revenge, a rant that should have been then edited to remove the repetitive declarations of hatred against his father. He does go on! I presume, by way of demonstration, he is subjecting his readers to what he had to endure from his father. If he didn’t like it, why would we? I can’t help wondering why, despite winning the Strega Prize, it has taken two decades to be translated into English. As much as I admire Starnone’s other novels, I must mark this one down. Difficult to read, too, because men of my generation may recognize something of the father in themselves.
Merged review:
A difficult book to read. Not for everyone. It feels as though it was written for therapeutic reasons, an act of revenge, a rant that should have been then edited to remove the repetitive declarations of hatred against his father. He does go on! I presume, by way of demonstration, he is subjecting his readers to what he had to endure from his father. If he didn’t like it, why would we? I can’t help wondering why, despite winning the Strega Prize, it has taken two decades to be translated into English. As much as I admire Starnone’s other novels, I must mark this one down. Difficult to read, too, because men of my generation may recognize something of the father in themselves....more
Apart from anything else pertaining to this controversial novel (memoir?), I have serious reservations about the plot’s dependence upon a case of reprApart from anything else pertaining to this controversial novel (memoir?), I have serious reservations about the plot’s dependence upon a case of repressed/recovered memory – now generally considered a discredited notion. ...more
Set in northern Paris over the period of the Second Empire, the reign of Napoleon III, this grim account of the damage done by alcohol must have been Set in northern Paris over the period of the Second Empire, the reign of Napoleon III, this grim account of the damage done by alcohol must have been essential reading for the Temperance movement. Not a book that offers any cheer – Zola rarely does – but nevertheless great literature. One thing that did strike me: apart from the expected domestic violence fueled by grog, there seems to have been a fairly high level of such violence as a background norm. Children and women were belted as a matter of course. ...more
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