Reviews

The Leopard by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa

drlucyc's review

funny reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

maddalenabrozzi's review against another edition

challenging reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

robertwhelan's review against another edition

4.0

I especially enjoyed the musings of the Leopard, Don Fabrizio, as he navigates the new world that's changing around him.

herielma's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

journeyingjeff's review against another edition

5.0

This historical novel set in Risorgimento Italy is told from the perspective of the aristocracy who are being replaced by the new democratic order. The author, whose ancestors inspired the characters of the novel, evokes the time and place with great insight and detail. Some of the passages could stand alone as poetry rather than prose. Sadly, Lampedusa waited until the end of his life to produce this masterpiece.

clbonni03's review

informative reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

itsmiba's review against another edition

informative reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

elena_revisited's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

kalliegrace's review against another edition

funny medium-paced

4.0

This is witty and almost cute, very pleasant to spend time with. The rich and privileged fall elegantly downward.

cody240fc's review against another edition

4.0

Sadness pervades every pore of this book, a sadness that most often takes the form of nostalgia. Lampedusa, like The Leopard, laments the passing of old Sicilian traditions, and this struggle between modernity and tradition is the primary focus of the book. Time itself is also front and center, and through the passage of years in the plot Lampedusa highlights the distortion of truth through memory.

The Leopard, aka Don Fabrizio, is a wonderful character. Charming is the best way to describe him. I also liked Lampedusa's tendency to drop short anecdotes about people and objects in the distant future. The future of a marriage, for instance, is summarized in just a few short lines even though the two characters are only just engaged. Or the line about a ceiling of a palace which would meet its end 80 years in the future from a bomb made in Pennsylvania. These anecdotes add a sense of irony to the story.

The prose is excellent as well, so the translator deserves congratulations on his work as well. An excellent reading experience, high four stars.