The Latest Breaking News from Italo Calvino

QFWFQ review – If On a Winter’s Night a Traveller is taken in a bold new direction

Gregory Nussen spins Italo Calvino’s surrealist authorial intrusions into a fascinating, playful and political show

The Guardian - UK · Aug 11

The ten best short novels under 150 pages – chosen by experts

A novel doesn’t need to be a hefty tome to change your life. Forget War and Peace (1,200 pages) or Les Misérables (1,400 pages); these expert recommendations are under 150 pages – short enough to tear through over a weekend.

The Conversation · Jul 29

A dreamscape of transcendental potential: Rhett Davis’ Arborescence is at once terrifying and bewitching

American psychologist Abraham Maslow’s well-known hierarchy of needs theory, first proposed in 1943, positions self-actualisation at the apex of human motivation and flourishing. According to Maslow, it is only after an individual’s basic physiological needs are met – along with the need for safety, love and esteem – that they…

The Conversation · Aug 27, 2025

The Written World and the Unwritten World by Italo Calvino review – exquisite flights of imagination

Calvino ponders life, literature and the mysterious spaces in between in this rich collection of essays, reviews, interviews and more

The Guardian - UK · Jan 10, 2023

5 wintry books to read during long nights

Winter solstice brings the shortest day and longest night of the year in the Northern Hemisphere. It’s a great night to spend reading.

The Conversation · Dec 19, 2022

You’ve got style: Brilliant books on creative writing

From Italo Calvino to Dorothea Brande, Emma Cummins reflects on the books that inspire her as a writer

The Guardian - UK · Jul 20, 2022

Calvino Nights review – irresistible theatre that sharpens the senses

Based on Italo Calvino folk tales, Kneehigh founder Mike Shepherd’s bounteous show features burning instruments, puppetry and political outrage

The Guardian - UK · May 4, 2022