Numbers in the Dark: And Other Stories by Italo Calvino (PDF)

Description

For the first time in paperback–a volume of thirty-seven diabolically inventive stories, fables, and “impossible interviews” from one of the great fantasists of the 20th century, displaying the full breadth of his vision and wit. Written between 1943 and 1984 and masterfully translated by Tim Parks, the fictions in Numbers in the Dark display all of Calvino’s dazzling gifts: whimsy and horror, exuberance of style, and a cheerful grasp of the absurdities of the human condition.

User’s Reviews

Editorial Reviews: From Publishers Weekly A collection of previously uncollected stories from the late Italian fabulist. Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. Review “The curious quirks that would shape Calvino’s eccentric orbit can be described, along with the exuberant talent and sense of magic that would make that orbit a flaming one.” -Los Angeles Times”With seventeen books in print, Italo Calvino enjoys a privilege that few foreign writers ever achieve here: virtually all his works can be read in English… Calvino’s ready availability is of course a sign (and support) of his canonical status in world literature, the capacity of his fiction to be significant in many different cultures… Tim Park’s translation is perfectly in tune with the various dialects and discourses that Calvino assimilated during his career. By the ’80s his supple Italian was tossing off polylingual arpeggios, technical jargons, nonce words… More than accurate and readable [Park’s] version is inventive.” -The New York Times Book Review”Numbers in the Dark is a glorious grab bag… with gems from every phase in Calvino’s career.” – San Francisco Sunday Examiner & Chronicle Book Review”Warmly and expertly translated by Tim Parks, a gifted writer himself.” -Esquire From the Inside Flap For the first time in paperback–a volume of thirty-seven diabolically inventive stories, fables, and “impossible interviews” from one of the great fantasists of the 20th century, displaying the full breadth of his vision and wit. Written between 1943 and 1984 and masterfully translated by Tim Parks, the fictions in Numbers in the Dark display all of Calvino’s dazzling gifts: whimsy and horror, exuberance of style, and a cheerful grasp of the absurdities of the human condition. About the Author Italo Calvino (1923-1985) was born in Cuba, and grew up in San Remo, Italy. He was a member of the partisan movement during the German occupation of northern Italy in World War II. The novel that resulted from that experience, published in English as The Path to the Nest of Spiders, won widespread acclaim. His other works of fiction include the Baron in the Trees, The Castle of Crossed Destinies, Cosmicomics, Difficult Loves, If on a Winter’s Night a Traveler, Invisible Cities, Marcovaldo, Mr. Palomar, The Nonexistent Knight & The Cloven Viscount, t zero, Under the Jaguar Sun, and The Watcher and Other Stories. His works of nonfiction include Six Memos for the Next Millennium and The Uses of Literature, collections of literary essays, and the anthology Italian Folktales. Read more

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐This collections of stories, fables, ruminations covers much of the career of Italo. Since it begins with his earliest writings, there is an obvious disparate collection of quality. The greatest benefit for the reader is that it allows the reader to experience the creative process and development of Calvino.This has many stories which stand on their merit alone and many items which are only of interest because they indicate the journey Calvino pursued on his way to a mature artist.I do agree that this should not be a starting point for those are not familiar with Calvino’s work but rather an after drink cordial when one has digested his entire feast. He is not a Borges and there is a mix of fantasy realism. fables, and philosophical lecturing.

⭐This is of my favorite short story collections of italo calvino, and one of the first books of his I read. This book starts with some really short stories and then some longer ones. I find there to be a lot of stories that have to do with political frameworks. “Beheading the Heads” is my favorite story.

⭐This is a wonderful collection of little gems.Unfortunately the Kindle to iPad edition is filled with “typos”— I suppose representing failure of the OCR used to create the file?

⭐There are some good pieces in here. The humor is especially good. Unfortunately there are a few pieces here that feel like workshop exercises. He doesn’t lack for talent, but he sometimes will really work that story to the Nth degree even though the idea doesn’t sustain a protracted treatment.

⭐I appreciated having an overview of Calvino through these short works, many of which were unpublished or marginal to his main work in some way. I read the latter half, Tales and Dialogs, first to see how much I liked the mature Calvino, then returned to read his juvenile work. Even as a teenager he was experimenting with alternative logics and the absurdities of society (writing in mid-1940s Italy struggling with fascism and war). These forays into strange societies and worlds evolved into the evocative but somewhat abstract fantasies he later created, inheriting from Kafka, Borges, and perhaps S.Y. Agnon.Elaborate discourses on technical subjects–plumbing, black holes–contain within them hints of a disaffected approach toward people. One of the central (and rare) stories in the collection, World Memory, contains a sort of deranged version of Vannevar Bush’s essay “As We May Think”. Elsewhere, Calvino spins musings on the mid-20th-century phone system as backdrop to an exploration of an alienated individual who has trouble with relationships, a kind of early prototype of the globalized elite (Before You Say ‘Hello’).Natural conversation and affection is mostly missing from these stories. There’s a good deal of humor, mostly of the sardonic type but verging on slapstick in The Queen’s Necklace. There are also passages approaching tenderness, such as in Love Far from Home. But more commonly, Calvino leaves distance between himself and his characters, making them figures in an intellectual landscape that he finds more interesting.

⭐the other day, i sat there reading the times, doing the crossword in crayon which is a mistake. then it happened, i reached back to find something to place my coffee cup on and this book magically appeared in my hand as if out of the ether. well, don’t you know the jacket is a heavy kind of wrapped, bonded paper and i used it as a coaster. it fit expertly into the spot i had cleared for it on the kitchen counter so yes, i highly recommend this book.

⭐At their best, Calvino’s stories center around a twist that captures the essence of our times, or society or our humanity. The stories are not pure entertainment but rather ways of communicating something that defies simple statement in language.Once read, I find I remember a moment or a sense of how our world is, yet can’t quite put it in words. I suppose that’s why Calvino had to express them as stories. I remember a couple such moments now, years after reading Numbers in the Dark and the other short stories in the book.

⭐If you see polka dots as round stripes (as I do) then this collection will appeal to you. This guy has a really off beat take on the world.

⭐A series of short stories – some only a page long. Perhaps not as cerebral as Cosmicomics – but still well worth a read and very Calvino-esque.

⭐After so many years Camino is even more relevant today. I must read

⭐Perfect delivery. Italian master.

⭐italo calvino is a master story teller.

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