{"product_id":"that-awful-mess-on-the-via-merulana-paperback","title":"That Awful Mess on the Via Merulana - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eCarlo Emilio Gadda\u003c\/b\u003e (Author), \u003cb\u003eItalo Calvino\u003c\/b\u003e (Introduction by), \u003cb\u003eWilliam Weaver\u003c\/b\u003e (Translator)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn a large apartment house in central Rome, two crimes are committed within a matter of days: a burglary, in which a good deal of money and precious jewels are taken, and a murder, as a young woman whose husband is out of town is found with her throat cut. Called in to investigate, melancholy Detective Ciccio, a secret admirer of the murdered woman and a friend of her husband's, discovers that almost everyone in the apartment building is somehow involved in the case, and with each new development the mystery only deepens and broadens. Gadda's sublimely different detective story presents a scathing picture of fascist Italy while tracking the elusiveness of the truth, the impossibility of proof, and the infinite complexity of the workings of fate, showing how they come into conflict with the demands of justice and love. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eItalo Calvino, Pier Paolo Pasolini, and Alberto Moravia all considered \u003ci\u003eThat Awful Mess on the Via Merulana\u003c\/i\u003e to be the great modern Italian novel. Unquestionably, it is a work of universal significance and protean genius: a rich social novel, a comic opera, an act of political resistance, a blazing feat of baroque wordplay, and a haunting story of life and death.\u003ch3\u003eBack Jacket\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e'A brilliant, sarcastic appraisal of life in Italy, told in swift-paced prose -a murder mystery intermingled with witty observations and telling phrases that cut through to the bone of the Italian people.' -Newsday\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eCarlo Emilio Gadda\u003c\/b\u003e (1893--1973) was born in Milan, where he spent a \"tormented childhood and even more miserable adolescence.\" He earned a degree in engineering, volunteered to fight in World War I, and was taken prisoner by the Germans. After the war, Gadda began to write while working as an engineer in countries as far afield as Argentina. Among Gadda's other books are a novel, \u003ci\u003eAcquainted with Grief\u003c\/i\u003e, and his \u003ci\u003eWar and Prison Journals\u003c\/i\u003e. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eItalo Calvino\u003c\/b\u003e (1923--1985) was an Italian writer and novelist. His works include \u003ci\u003eNumbers in the Dark\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Road to San Giovanni\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eSix Memos for the Next Millennium\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Baron in the Trees\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eIf on a Winter's Night a Traveller\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eInvisible Cities\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eMarcovaldo\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eMr. Palomar\u003c\/i\u003e. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eWilliam Weaver\u003c\/b\u003e is celebrated for his numerous translations from the Italian, including Umberto Eco's \u003ci\u003eThe Name of the Ros\u003c\/i\u003ee and novels and stories by Italo Calvino. Weaver's translation of Pirandello's \u003ci\u003eThe Late Mattia Pascal\u003c\/i\u003e is also\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003epublished by NYRB Classics.\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 400\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.89 x 8 x 5 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e February 27, 2007\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51771264074016,"sku":"9781590172223","price":17.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0974\/9764\/5344\/files\/5f1450893b1112a96737dd57cae9f80f.webp?v=1780383788","url":"https:\/\/ebocreations.com\/products\/that-awful-mess-on-the-via-merulana-paperback","provider":"The E-Book Oasis LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}