• Home
  • About
  • Study Italian With Me
    • Practice Conversation
      • Chiacchieriamo
    • Study Grammar
      • Ti aiuto io!
    • Self-Study
      • Giorno dopo giorno
  • Blog
  • Contact

Instantly Italy

Italian speaking practice and grammar tutoring

[Italian Books] The Chimera by Sebastiano Vassalli, a Story of Witchcraft and Life in 17th-Century Rural Italy

10/31/2019

This post is about The Chimera by Sebastiano Vassalli, a book about Italian history and about the life of Antonia, a girl who lived in the 1600s
Subscribe to the Vespa rides and get full access to Your Italian Toolbox, a library of language learning materials that you can use to practice Italian.

I am a book hoarder, I have to admit it.

One of my favorite pastimes is browsing books in a bookstore and every time I do so it is really hard for me not to bring a book home.

If you add to that the fact that I also adopt books from friends or bring stacks home from the thrift store, the result is that my bookshelves are literally overflowing. Needless to say, since I am constantly buying new books, I tend to forget what’s in my bookcase (ok, I have an addiction but it’s healthier than smoking, isn’t it?).

But this habit of accumulating books comes in handy when I have just finished a book and I have no new titles to read: my bookcase is literally a personal bookstore of previously selected titles where I can choose my next read.

That’s exactly what happened with the book I’d like to tell you about today. I was looking for something new to read and I’ve come across this old book – I think my aunt gave it to me ages ago – that had always fascinated me but somehow I had never found the inspiration to read.

The book is La chimera by Sebastiano Vassalli (you can find it in English as The Chimera but it’s an old book and I fear it might be out of print in the English version), winner of the prestigious Strega Prize in 1990.

I have kept the book on my shelves for years because I was a bit scared by it: it’s a historical book and in most cases, I have to admit it, I find this kind of book a little bit boring, or better, a bit difficult to read. But then I read some very enthusiastic reviews and I decided I would give it a try one day. And that day came, a couple of weeks ago.

What can I say? It is probably one of the best books I’ve read in my whole life. 

The book tells the story of Antonia, a girl who lived in Italy between 1590 and 1610. She lived near Novara, in a village named Zerbino (the place doesn’t exist anymore), in the plains of Piedmont at the foot of Monte Rosa, a beautiful area whose scenery is characterized by the mountains in the distance and the infinite view of rice paddies.

There lived Antonia, an orphan girl who was raised by the nuns and then was adopted by a couple of very good farmers, who brought her to Zerbino – where all her misfortunes began. In fact, there she grew up and became an incredibly beautiful woman, raising the interest of young men and the enmity of older women.

This – and a series of misfortunate events – led her to be accused of being a witch and to be burned at the stake, after suffering terrible tortures.

This is basically the plot of the book but I don’t think I have spoiled you anything because it’s something else that makes this book great. What I really appreciated is the description of life in rural Italy in the 1600s. Daily life is depicted in great detail and Sebastiano Vassalli has a great gift for telling historical facts in a very compelling and interesting way.

This book is a real page-turner, even when the focus is on less entertaining topics such as the life of poor people working in the rice paddies or the careful explanation of how things worked inside the Catholic church at the time. Vassalli is a master at describing characters and events, which will remain in your mind as clear pictures. Plus, there is constant humor in his writing and this makes the read even more enjoyable.

Finally, I’d like to quote a few sentences from Joseph Farrell’s review on The Independent: “The past may have been dominated by the church and the present by politics, but the inhumanities, the cruelties, the compromises, the bureaucracies, the squabbles between provinces and capitals remain unchanged. This novel has a remarkable feeling for the fictional time it describes, as well as a sharp eye for matters which are not limited to any time“.

As a matter of fact, the story is a perfect description of a past society whose bad aspects are still very much alive today and this makes the novel very modern as well.

This book reminds me, for some reason, of two other Italian books: Il nome della rosa by Umberto Eco, for its dark atmosphere that involves the church, and I promessi sposi by Alessandro Manzoni, for its 17th-century setting, but I have found it a much more entertaining read – but those are masterpieces, I’m not denying that!

And what about you? Have you read any good books recently?

Share:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
«
»

Filed Under: Books about Italy 2 Comments

Comments

  1. Derek Hook says

    10/31/2019 at 5:40 PM

    Plenty of copies on Abebooks both in English and Italian

    Reply
    • cinzia says

      10/31/2019 at 6:05 PM

      That’s great to hear, thank you!!! Thanks for sharing the information.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Ciao!

My name is Cinzia and Italy is the place I call home.

Books feed my soul, music fills my days and travelling makes my life richer. I am a day dreamer, tireless walker and believer in the power of little things.

I’ve created Instantly Italy to take you to Italy with me and explore together this crazy but “oh so lovely” country. Read More…

Latest from the blog

When to use imperfetto or passato prossimo in Italian

[Italian Grammar] Imperfetto vs. Passato Prossimo: When To Use One or the Other?

Pausa Caffè is a challenge that helps your overcome your fear of speaking Italian, one of the most common issues of students

Pausa Caffè: A Challenge To Overcome Your Fear of Speaking Italian

Things I blog about

  • Books about Italy
  • Italian culture
  • Italian food
  • Italian language
  • Learning languages
  • Life in Italy
  • Visiting Italy

You can find me here

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS

Subscribe to know more about all things Italian

Copyright © 2021 · Instantly Italy - Cinzia Ferri · Vat #01658340094 · Site by Francesca Marano · Powered by WordPress and Genesis

Copyright © 2021 · Adorn Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

Enter your name and email to join the Vespa ride!
If you sign up, you'll get updates about Instantly Italy and access to Your Italian Toolbox, a library of Italian language materials.
Your information will never be shared or sold to a 3rd party.