Ocean Sea (novel)
Ocean Sea (Italian: Oceano mare) is a 1993 novel by the Italian writer Alessandro Baricco. Its narrative revolves around the lives of a group of people gathered at a remote seaside hotel. The novel won the Viareggio Prize.[1]
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| Author | Alessandro Baricco |
|---|---|
| Original title | Oceano mare |
| Translator | Alastair McEwen |
| Country | Italy |
| Language | Italian |
| Publisher | Rizzoli editore |
Publication date | 1993 |
Published in English | 1999 |
| Pages | 226 |
| ISBN | 88-17-66043-4 |
Reception
Richard Bernstein reviewed the book for The New York Times, and wrote: "Ocean Sea unfolds in its poetically elliptical way. Mr. Baricco is a literary cubist, a stylist who looks simultaneously at the several sides of things. He switches from one rhetorical mode to another, from a kind of symbolist poetry to grand adventure narrative to picaresque comedy." Bernstein continued: "This style of writing can be precious, artificial, a kind of verbal craftsmanship for craftsmanship's sake, but generally I read Ocean Sea transfixed by Mr. Baricco's linguistic originality, the boisterousness of his characters, and the skill with which he weaves the threads of a seemingly disjointed plot into a single narrative strand."[2] Tom Boncza-Tomaszewski of The Independent called the book an "extraordinary novel", and wrote: "A book about being, metaphysics juggled like the best trick of a wise old clown, this is a novel that at least suggests there's more to life than what any rationalist would tell you."[3]
See also
References
- "Premio Letterario Viareggio Rèpaci - Albo d'oro". premioletterarioviareggiorepaci.it (in Italian). Viareggio Prize. Retrieved 2011-12-18.
- Bernstein, Richard (1999-03-31). "Books of the Times; Literary Cubism for Eccentrics at a Seaside Hotel". The New York Times. Retrieved 2011-12-18.
- Boncza-Tomaszewski, Tom (2008-07-28). "Ocean Sea". The Independent. Retrieved 2011-12-18.