This July the Italian Book Club in Mumbai reads Marcovaldo by Italo Calvino.
Marcovaldo is a collection of twenty short stories centered on a worker (Marcovaldo) living in a grey, industrial city in northern Italy during the 1950s and 1960s. Despite his modest life, Marcovaldo is constantly in search of beauty, nature, and meaning, though his dreams rarely go as planned. Each story is set during a different season, creating a subtle rhythm that contrasts the natural world with the artificiality of urban life. Through Marcovaldo’s eyes, Calvino offers a gentle yet sharp critique of consumerism, city living, and our disconnection from nature.
The result is a poetic reflection on the human condition, exploring the tension between hope and reality, nature and industry, simplicity and modernity.
Italo Calvino (1923–1985) began his literary career with neorealist works before turning to imaginative fiction that blended fantasy, philosophy, and structural experimentation. His best-known books include Invisible Cities, The Baron in the Trees, and If on a winter’s night a traveller. Calvino is widely regarded as one of the most influential Italian authors of the 20th century, with his works translated into dozens of languages and studied around the world.
Wednesday 16 July | Title Waves Bookstore, Bandra | 6.30 pm
The book may be read in the Italian original or in English