blueskygreentreesyellowsun's review against another edition
1.0
As with most Umberto Eco books, the concept is fabulous but the writing is horrible.
germancho's review against another edition
4.0
Es sobre un hombre que pierde todos los recuerdos asociados a experiencias vividas y a sentimientos, solo recuerda lo que ha leido, solo palabras y expresiones... y trata de reconstruir su vida volviendo a sus recuerdos de la infancia. Me imagino que hay que ser italiano para disfrutarlo a fondo.
saidjaoujat's review against another edition
4.0
una idea buena y un argumento muy interesante desarrollado con coherencia...es la historia de un hombre que ha perdido por completo la memoria personal y solo le queda una memoria de papel,,a través de ese viaje histórico y cultural vivamos una sensacion de nostalgia con sentido de ironía
nbrickman's review
1.0
I learned that this is not a very wise selection for a first book club meeting. However, I think the pretentiousness of it may have weeded out the less serious and less cerebral readers out there. This book was powerful in places and the concept was very thought-provoking. What would happen if you woke up at 60 after a stroke and did not remember any part of your life, except for the literature you immersed yourself in? I did enjoy the literary references (especially the poetry ones) but wasn't quite satisfied with the way the tale unraveled. Nonetheless, I will always remember it because of the fact that I read it for the first meeting of my own book club!
haami's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
helb_rostislavovich's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
4.25
rlchen383's review
fast-paced
4.5
Very inventive novel and contemplation on what constitutes memory. I wish I understood more of the references but it was also fun to read what might have been standard fare for Italian children in the 40s
halfcentreader's review
2.0
On one level I enjoyed Yambo's search for his identity after the first event, but it did seem to go on way too long. Then, after the second event, I was swept up in his actual memories, until they became bogged down in mixed up dream vs memory images... then I just wanted to skip to the end.
lisa_and_her_books's review against another edition
informative
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
likecymbeline's review against another edition
3.0
I bought this book for 25 cents at the Tara Rotary Book Sale, which is a real bargain considering it's hard-cover and filled with beautiful colour reproductions of art, comics, photographs, and other ephemera. Much like [b:The Uncommon Reader|1096390|The Uncommon Reader|Alan Bennett|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1317064291s/1096390.jpg|1792422] which I read a few weeks ago, going through this book I was particularly excited to have Eco's recommendations for what to read next. Bennett's book was far more blithe, of course, whereas Eco has his trademark deep intertextuality at play, but for me the joy of making connections between art and literature and culture is there with both of them.
There are ways in which it drags. There were definitely times where I felt that I'd heard so many stories of growing up in Fascist Italy that it was hard to care for another personalized retelling in fiction. I constantly wondered why it was only his childhood literary history he was interested in recovering, seeing as any work connected deeply with his personal life as he grew to be an adult should surely also matter. I wondered why he didn't strive to recover more of that part of his history, and felt like the only reason it didn't get covered was because it was post-Fascism and that's what Eco wanted to write about. I suppose there's an extent to which childhood is the period of development, of intensity, and the cornerstone of our eventual Self. Perhaps Yambo did level out, cease developing at the pace of youth, but I dislike the presumed stasis of adulthood. We have our habits, perhaps, but I don't think our identities are any more permanent and fixed.
There are ways in which it drags. There were definitely times where I felt that I'd heard so many stories of growing up in Fascist Italy that it was hard to care for another personalized retelling in fiction. I constantly wondered why it was only his childhood literary history he was interested in recovering, seeing as any work connected deeply with his personal life as he grew to be an adult should surely also matter. I wondered why he didn't strive to recover more of that part of his history, and felt like the only reason it didn't get covered was because it was post-Fascism and that's what Eco wanted to write about. I suppose there's an extent to which childhood is the period of development, of intensity, and the cornerstone of our eventual Self. Perhaps Yambo did level out, cease developing at the pace of youth, but I dislike the presumed stasis of adulthood. We have our habits, perhaps, but I don't think our identities are any more permanent and fixed.