Italy is such a historically and culturally rich country and there are/were so many great Italian authors – Alighieri Dante, Giovanni Boccaccio, Niccolo Machiavelli, Alessandro Manzoni (The Betrothed), Cesare Pavese, Umberto Eco (Foucault’s Pendulum), Italo Calvino (The Baron in the Trees), to name just a few. Taking this into account and since I loved some Italian books I’ve read recently I’ve decided to make 2022 my year exploring Italian literature and set up the Italia (Italy) Reading Challenge (to run between January and December 2022). To make this challenge more manageable for myself, I have decided to limit my reading goal to just 10 books written by Italian authors. If we consider that these books all come from just one country, I don’t think it’s a bad start at all, and here is my selection for this year:
- Alberto Moravia – Contempt/Boredom/The Time of Indifference
- Antonio Tabucchi – Pereira Maintains
- Primo Levi – If This is a Man/If Not Now, When?
- Elena Ferrante – The Days of Abandonment
- Leonardo Sciascia – To Each His Own
- Giorgio Bassani – The Garden of the Finzi-Continis
- Italo Svevo – Zeno’s Conscience
- Dacia Maraini – The Silent Duchess
- Elsa Morante – Arturo’s Island
- Luigi Pirandello – The Late Mattia Pascal
Finally, if you want to join me on this journey this year (reading any number of books), you can grab the banner and leave links to your reviews throughout the year in the comments section on this permanent page – Italia Reading Challenge 2022 or below and I will add them to the general list, as well as do a summary post in December 2022 – #ReadItaliaChallenge.
Thoughts on Papyrus 
Great list. Contempt is excellent.
I might as well join you since I’ve already read two Italian books this months.
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Hi Emma, Is Contempt the movie directed by Jean-Luc Godard, based on this novel?
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Yes.
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Wonderful! Loved the movie! Now I want to read the book!
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It’s an excellent novella.
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So nice to know that! Loved the movie. Hoping to read the novella now.
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Great, thank you!
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This is so cool, Diana! Will try to join. This is a good reason for me to finally read Foucault’s Pendulum 😊 I loved Pereira Maintains. Want to read The Garden of the Finzi-Continis. Thanks so much for hosting 😊
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This is an event I might well join in with at some point this year, and I love your list. The Levi and Tabucchi are both books I thought very highly of.
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Great, I would love you to join in!
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Just read and reviewed a great story by the “father of Italian SF” — Lino Aldani. Unfortunately, only three of his short stories have been translated….
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Never heard of Lino Aldani before, interesting! I love reading foreign sci-fi. It looks like his Quando le radici (1977) has a particularly intriguing premise…
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I read his powerful novella “Good Night, Sophie” (1963, trans. 1973). It is available in translation. I linked it online in my review.
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I guess “Good Night, Sophie” is technically a novelette by length… not a novella. hah
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If this is a man is a really moving book, I hope you would enjoy it!!
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Also Primo Levi’s Reawakening – SO powerful!
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Excellent! As I have at least a couple of Eco reads or rereads, and some Levi or Calvino short stories on my shelves, I might well be joining you (Collodi’s Pinocchio has long been ony TBR list).
I also read some Italian short stories in a parallel translation (Antonio Tabucchi was one of those in the collection) so I might seek out some more.
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Great, thanks, I would love you to join in, your reviews are always so interesting and perceptive.
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Sounds like an interesting challenge! I’ll look forward to hearing what you think of the books. I have The Betrothed on my Classics Club list, but I’m not sure whether I’ll get to it this year – I’ll try!
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Thanks! I really liked The Betrothed and hope you love it too. It is a rather traditional tale, but I also see why it is the Italian classic.
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I’ve been looking for lists like this! I love Italo Calvino and Primo Levi. Thanks for introducing me to more Italian authors! 🙂
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What a great idea for a reading challenge! I never thought of setting one on books from a specific country. Good luck with the challenge : )
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Thank you!
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Wonderful list! I am happy that you included Bassani and Tabucchi. Pereira maintains is one of my favorite novels ever.
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