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adrien's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
fast-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
2.0
oxnard_montalvo's review against another edition
Very dense for so short a book. Didn’t quite hit the mark for me, though I appreciated the perspective and the story itself.
cristinaz's review against another edition
3.75
Viene raccontata la storia del Dottor Fadigati attraverso gli occhi di quello che inizialmente sembra essere un osservatore esterno. Infatti, già nelle prime pagine mi sono posta l’interrogativo sul perché di questa scelta, ma in seguito diventa tutto chiaro.
L’osservatore in realtà èun ragazzo giovane di una famiglia ebrea, che dopo aver visto un iniziale tolleranza e un conseguente ostracismo crescente nei confronti del Dottore, si ritrova a vivere una storia analoga piano piano che l’Italia fasciata si avvicina alla politica Hitleriana.
Il parallelismo di queste due vite è interessante, in quanto pone degli interrogativi e delle soluzioni rispettivamente alla gestione dell’isolamento e dalla discriminazione in un cittadina come Ferrara che diventa paese.
Quello che ha destato il mio interesse è stata l’ambientazione, in quando si tratta di città e paesi che frequento abitualmente o almeno di cui ho sentito parlare; ritrovarli descritti in un romanzo con tanto di riferimenti a gelaterie, hotel di punta, treni e palazzi storici nel contesto degli anni 20 è stato divertente.
In linea generale però, l’opera non mi ha stupita o suscitato in me delle emozioni particolari. Si tratta quasi di un lungo racconto che né mi ha dato modo di conoscere il Dottor Fadigati e né mi ha dato il tempo di conoscere la voce narrante per riuscire ad immedesimarmi appeno.
chokherbaly's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
raulbime's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 Stars
The second book in the Novel of Ferrara series of books, even better than the first one—which was also good—and I would like to thank Ilse and Teresa for encouraging me to read the books after I had finished [b:The Garden of the Finzi-Continis|355789|The Garden of the Finzi-Continis|Giorgio Bassani|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1388301186l/355789._SY75_.jpg|345967]. As he’s done in the two previous books I have read, Bassani takes a character—in this case Dr. Athos Fadigati, and the city of Ferrara and intertwines the life of the character with that of the city, building the story around the characters and how they are perceived by and interact with the other inhabitants of the city.
Dr. Fadigati is a homosexual in Fascist Italy. Originally from Venice he settles in Ferrara, establishes an exemplary professional standing in the town, is the director of the ENT department of the Sant’Anna Hospital and has established a successful clinic of his own, and is also well liked for his affability, his refinement, and for the general way in which he carries himself and conducts his business. Over the years, the inhabitants of the town begin to speculate about his bachelor status as the man becomes middle-aged with no pretty bejewelled wife to complement the heteronormative image that the town, of course, has for the lives of upper class professional men. Soon enough, rumours begin to be heard of his “secret vice” and the town’s surprisingly tolerant reaction, at first, because of the measures Fadigati takes to be discreet:
“What above all disposed them to indulgence toward Fadigati and, after the first recoil of alarmed dismay, almost to admiration, was precisely that, his style, and by style first and foremost they meant one thing: his discretion, the evident care he had taken and continued to take in concealing his tastes, so as not to cause scandal. Yes–they said–now that his secret was no longer a secret, now that everything was clear as could be, at last one could be sure how to behave toward him.”
All of this changes when Fadigati, who had always had relationships with other discreet middle-aged men like him, falls for a young university student, Deliliers, who is abusive, haughty, and who constantly humiliates him in public. The false sense of standing that Fadigati had built through the years disintegrates quickly while that aspect both he and the town cherished most, discretion, disappears, leading to tragedy.
Giorgio Bassani’s voice, that of a young Jewish man growing up in Fascist Italy and observing the happenings and people of his town, becomes even more solid in this book as it leads up to [b:The Garden of the Finzi-Continis|355789|The Garden of the Finzi-Continis|Giorgio Bassani|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1388301186l/355789._SY75_.jpg|345967], which follows this one and the best from him I’ve read so far, and the Finzi-Continis even get a little shout out here which was a nice foreshadowing to their own tale. Again, as with the other books, Bassani shows how fascism became norm in Italy. How insidious its spread and acceptance became, the different ways those who are targeted by its policies, especially the racial laws discriminatory against Jews, react to this. As our narrator grapples with the threat this development means to him as a Jew and his future. Both homophobia and anti-semitism being explored in this context. Fadigati is so self-loathing that he accepts the abuse and discrimination that he is subjected to. Our narrator refuses to accept the anti-semitism levelled against him, as anything other than it is—hatred.
It was strange reading this book whilst Kenyan lawmakers were blatantly calling for the murder of queer people and the Kenyan press gave themselves over as a mouthpiece to every vitriolic bigotry that they could get from religious and political leaders. Over the weeks I’ve been bombarded by violent anti-queer discourse in every place I spend time in, making it virtually inescapable, and I can’t remember encountering the level of hatred I’ve seen these past few weeks. Which is the reason I have decided to set my account here to private, which sucks as it restricts the interaction I enjoy with other readers, but which I think is necessary for some peace of mind. Granted that if the state does want to find me it will given the resources at its disposal, but I intend to keep on reading and writing reviews of books with queer themes, and I probably shouldn’t make surveillance for them easier given that being a refugee/immigrant/foreigner does put me in a more precarious situation. I hate that most of my recent reviews have my personal life and the books themselves entwined, but reading this book while all this bigotry unfolded was both eerie and overwhelming, which made this review even harder to write, but what a phenomenal book and what a phenomenal writer and I can’t wait to read more by him.
The second book in the Novel of Ferrara series of books, even better than the first one—which was also good—and I would like to thank Ilse and Teresa for encouraging me to read the books after I had finished [b:The Garden of the Finzi-Continis|355789|The Garden of the Finzi-Continis|Giorgio Bassani|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1388301186l/355789._SY75_.jpg|345967]. As he’s done in the two previous books I have read, Bassani takes a character—in this case Dr. Athos Fadigati, and the city of Ferrara and intertwines the life of the character with that of the city, building the story around the characters and how they are perceived by and interact with the other inhabitants of the city.
Dr. Fadigati is a homosexual in Fascist Italy. Originally from Venice he settles in Ferrara, establishes an exemplary professional standing in the town, is the director of the ENT department of the Sant’Anna Hospital and has established a successful clinic of his own, and is also well liked for his affability, his refinement, and for the general way in which he carries himself and conducts his business. Over the years, the inhabitants of the town begin to speculate about his bachelor status as the man becomes middle-aged with no pretty bejewelled wife to complement the heteronormative image that the town, of course, has for the lives of upper class professional men. Soon enough, rumours begin to be heard of his “secret vice” and the town’s surprisingly tolerant reaction, at first, because of the measures Fadigati takes to be discreet:
“What above all disposed them to indulgence toward Fadigati and, after the first recoil of alarmed dismay, almost to admiration, was precisely that, his style, and by style first and foremost they meant one thing: his discretion, the evident care he had taken and continued to take in concealing his tastes, so as not to cause scandal. Yes–they said–now that his secret was no longer a secret, now that everything was clear as could be, at last one could be sure how to behave toward him.”
All of this changes when Fadigati, who had always had relationships with other discreet middle-aged men like him, falls for a young university student, Deliliers, who is abusive, haughty, and who constantly humiliates him in public. The false sense of standing that Fadigati had built through the years disintegrates quickly while that aspect both he and the town cherished most, discretion, disappears, leading to tragedy.
Giorgio Bassani’s voice, that of a young Jewish man growing up in Fascist Italy and observing the happenings and people of his town, becomes even more solid in this book as it leads up to [b:The Garden of the Finzi-Continis|355789|The Garden of the Finzi-Continis|Giorgio Bassani|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1388301186l/355789._SY75_.jpg|345967], which follows this one and the best from him I’ve read so far, and the Finzi-Continis even get a little shout out here which was a nice foreshadowing to their own tale. Again, as with the other books, Bassani shows how fascism became norm in Italy. How insidious its spread and acceptance became, the different ways those who are targeted by its policies, especially the racial laws discriminatory against Jews, react to this. As our narrator grapples with the threat this development means to him as a Jew and his future. Both homophobia and anti-semitism being explored in this context. Fadigati is so self-loathing that he accepts the abuse and discrimination that he is subjected to. Our narrator refuses to accept the anti-semitism levelled against him, as anything other than it is—hatred.
It was strange reading this book whilst Kenyan lawmakers were blatantly calling for the murder of queer people and the Kenyan press gave themselves over as a mouthpiece to every vitriolic bigotry that they could get from religious and political leaders. Over the weeks I’ve been bombarded by violent anti-queer discourse in every place I spend time in, making it virtually inescapable, and I can’t remember encountering the level of hatred I’ve seen these past few weeks. Which is the reason I have decided to set my account here to private, which sucks as it restricts the interaction I enjoy with other readers, but which I think is necessary for some peace of mind. Granted that if the state does want to find me it will given the resources at its disposal, but I intend to keep on reading and writing reviews of books with queer themes, and I probably shouldn’t make surveillance for them easier given that being a refugee/immigrant/foreigner does put me in a more precarious situation. I hate that most of my recent reviews have my personal life and the books themselves entwined, but reading this book while all this bigotry unfolded was both eerie and overwhelming, which made this review even harder to write, but what a phenomenal book and what a phenomenal writer and I can’t wait to read more by him.
beth79's review against another edition
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
nicxlo's review against another edition
informative
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
3.0
helvinho's review against another edition
fast-paced
4.25
Comprei esse no finzinho de 2022 numa feira lá na Todavia sem saber muita coisa, mais porque queria ganhar uma ecobag de brinde. Só fui pegar pra ler hoje, porque não podia assumir uma grande leitura antes de voltar pra São Paulo. Acabei terminando hoje mesmo, que boa surpresa essa novella. Gostei muito da escrita de Giorgio Bassani e quero ler mais dele! Apresenta o ambiente, sabe a quantidade apropriada de personagens e o quanto se aprofundar em cada um. Que prazer é ler personagens honestamente erráticos e contraditórios, o pai do protagonista mesmo. Não vou falar sobre a história porque é tão curtinha que não vale estragar. A nós fudidos resta perceber que temos mais em comum que de diferente, mesmo. É isso.
marispa99's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0