The Complete Cosmicomics

The Complete Cosmicomics

Fiction, General Fiction
Paperback Published on: 06/05/2010
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Bookseller Reviews

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The Complete Cosmicomics
Dazzlyingly original and clever!
4.5 stars I am a massive fan of Italo Calvino, having read both his novels and his collected non-fiction, but this was my first experience of his short st... READ MORE
Sam E

Synopsis

Italo Calvino's enchanting stories about the evolution of the universe, with characters that are fashioned from mathematical formulae and cellular structures, The Complete Cosmicomics is translated by Martin McLaughlin, Tim Parks and William Weaver in Penguin Modern Classics.

'Naturally, we were all there, - dld Qfwfq said, - where else could we have been? Nobody knew then that there could be space. Or time either: what use did we have for time, packed in there like sardines?'

The Cosmicomics tell the story of the history of the universe, from the big bang, through millennia and across galaxies. It is witnessed through the eyes of 'cosmic know-it-all' Qfwfq, an exuberant, chameleon-like figure, who takes the shape of a dinosaur, a mollusc, a steamer captain and a moon milk gatherer, among others. This is the first complete edition in English of Italo Calvino's funny, whimsical and delightful stories, which blend scientific fact, flights of fancy, parody and wordplay to show the strangeness and the wonders of the world.

Italo Calvino (1923-1985), one of Italy's finest postwar writers, has delighted readers around the world with his deceptively simple, fable-like stories. Calvino was born in Cuba and raised in San Remo, Italy; he fought for the Italian Resistance from 1943-45. Among his other works published in Penguin Modern Classics are Italian Folktales, Hermit in Paris, Into the War, The Path to the Spiders' Nests, Numbers in the Dark, Six Memos for the Next Millennium and Why Read the Classics?

  • Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
  • ISBN: 9780141189680
  • Number of pages: 432
  • Weight: 318g
  • Dimensions: 200 x 130 x 25 mm

Customer Reviews

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The Complete Cosmicomics
Genius
An unpronounceable narrator - Qfwkq - at various times takes on the role of the last dinosaur, the first amphibian, the first cell, as well as other lunaci... READ MORE
Ian Ayris
The Complete Cosmicomics
Stunning imagination
From the moment they started mining for cheese on the moon I was hooked. And as for the origins of birds - Well!! Nothing before or since can possibly matc... READ MORE
George Moore