Among Women Only (Paperback, New ed)


Had Cesare Pavese (1908-1950) not committed suicide, he undoubtedly would have been the greatest Italian novelist of the twentieth century. In his brief career, he wrote a number of outstanding novels and was a major factor in introducing American and British fiction to Italy, translating books by Dickens, Melville, Joyce, and Faulkner. He was arrested a number of times for anti-Fascist activities before the war. In 1950, unable to reconcile his literary life with the demands made upon him by society, he took his life. Among Women Only, published two years before Pavese's death, won Italy's highest literary honor, the Strega Prize. Considered to be one of the chief sources for post-war Italian realism, it captures the pervading melancholy and emptiness of a society caught up in decadence and hedonism. Clelia, a successful couturier, returns to her native Turin to supervise the opening of a salon in the city where she spent her youth in poverty. She is drawn into a circle of fashionable young people and a world of restaurants and casinos, artists' studios and parties. Amidst this crowd of people who are trying to escape the futility and boredom of their lives in a mindless search for pleasure, she meets the solitary figure of Rosetta, whose suicide at the end of the story tragically foreshadows Pavese's own.

R444
List Price R596
Save R152 26%

Or split into 4x interest-free payments of 25% on orders over R50
Learn more

Discovery Miles4440
Delivery AdviceOut of stock

Toggle WishListAdd to wish list
Review this Item

Product Description

Had Cesare Pavese (1908-1950) not committed suicide, he undoubtedly would have been the greatest Italian novelist of the twentieth century. In his brief career, he wrote a number of outstanding novels and was a major factor in introducing American and British fiction to Italy, translating books by Dickens, Melville, Joyce, and Faulkner. He was arrested a number of times for anti-Fascist activities before the war. In 1950, unable to reconcile his literary life with the demands made upon him by society, he took his life. Among Women Only, published two years before Pavese's death, won Italy's highest literary honor, the Strega Prize. Considered to be one of the chief sources for post-war Italian realism, it captures the pervading melancholy and emptiness of a society caught up in decadence and hedonism. Clelia, a successful couturier, returns to her native Turin to supervise the opening of a salon in the city where she spent her youth in poverty. She is drawn into a circle of fashionable young people and a world of restaurants and casinos, artists' studios and parties. Amidst this crowd of people who are trying to escape the futility and boredom of their lives in a mindless search for pleasure, she meets the solitary figure of Rosetta, whose suicide at the end of the story tragically foreshadows Pavese's own.

Customer Reviews

No reviews or ratings yet - be the first to create one!

Product Details

General

Imprint

Peter Owen

Country of origin

United Kingdom

Release date

March 1997

Availability

Supplier out of stock. If you add this item to your wish list we will let you know when it becomes available.

Authors

Translators

Format

Paperback

Pages

208

Edition

New ed

ISBN-13

978-0-7206-1030-7

Barcode

9780720610307

Categories

LSN

0-7206-1030-3



Trending On Loot