Martin McLaughlin

Italo Calvino

Why Read the Classics? is an elegant defence of the value of great literature by one of the finest authors of the last century. Beginning with an essay on the attributes that define a classic (number one - classics are those books that people always say they are 'rereading', not 'reading'), this is an absorbing collection of Italo Calvino's witty and passionate criticism.

Why Read the Classics?

Capucine Fachot

Conflicted. 

Calvino is never one or the other, but lies in between revered genius and repetitive bland, the introduction promises a cataclysm of joy, I could rip the pages and hold them with me all the time, while the book tires one's enthousiasm about reading all together.

Caitlin Bohannon

In a collection of thirty-six wise, elegantly written essays, the late author of The Road to San Giovanni explores the the enduring significance of key authors and fine literature from the Western canon, discussing the works of Homer, Defoe, Galileo, Stendhal, Dickens, Hemingway, and many others. Reprint. 15,000 first printing.

Hellboy TCR

tabata gallina

This collection of essays provides critical appraisals and personal appreciations of the writers, poets, and scientists who meant most to Calvino at different stages of his life

Why Read the Classics?

Reviews