Serious Book

Antonio GhislanzoniProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.8

Word count: 187K words
Chapters: 19

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Libro serio by Antonio GhislanzoniAuthor: Ghislanzoni, Antonio, 1824-1893,Language: Italian, Class: PQ: Language and Literatures: Romance literatures: French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Release Date: Mar 1, 2006

Editor's review

Libro serio is an Italian-language work by Antonio Ghislanzoni, released free by Project Gutenberg. Ghislanzoni was active in the nineteenth century as a writer and opera librettist, and his writing carries the atmosphere of Italian literary and dramatic tradition. The title literally means 'serious book,' but given the author's background the content is more likely to excel in irony, jest or social observation than in solemn preaching. As a public-domain ebook, its greatest value is giving readers zero-cost access to a less-translated side of nineteenth-century Italian literature; it suits readers interested in Italian literature, opera culture or the social scene of nineteenth-century Europe. Read it as a side window: do not expect grand narrative, but note the wit in the language, the dramatic feel of dialogue, and how the author responds to his time. Because it is in Italian, the barrier lies mainly in language rather than length.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers with Italian reading ability who want nineteenth-century Italian literature
Literature enthusiasts interested in opera librettos and dramatic narrative
Scholars of Italian literature or nineteenth-century European popular writing
Language learners seeking free public-domain original texts

Not a good fit for

Readers with no Italian who are unwilling to use a translation
Beginners seeking a systematic literary-history guide or detailed annotations
Ordinary readers who want only tightly plotted modern fiction

Reading tips

Read the opening pages first to check language difficulty and style before choosing complete or selective reading.
Use an Italian dictionary or bilingual tools while reading, noting recurring period expressions.
Attend to dialogue and scene description to feel the rhythm the author brought from opera libretto writing.
If only the author interests you, look up his life and major works first, then return to this book.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

What language is Libro serio in? Can I read it without Italian?

The original is in Italian and is a public-domain ebook. Without Italian, direct reading is difficult; use translation tools alongside, or treat it as material for understanding nineteenth-century Italian literary style rather than as a plot-driven book.

Is this book a novel or some other genre?

The available information only confirms that it is by the Italian author Antonio Ghislanzoni and classified under language and literature; no more specific genre is given. Read the opening passages to judge genre and tone before deciding whether to read it through.

Are there usage notes for the Project Gutenberg edition?

This free ebook is published by Project Gutenberg as a public-domain text. Different readers may display Italian accented characters inconsistently; use software that supports Unicode and watch for word breaks caused by format conversion.

What reading pace suits this book?

Short sessions in multiple batches work well; read a small section and take brief notes on vocabulary and style. For language learning, read through first and revisit difficult passages; for literary interest, read introductory passages first and then decide the scope of close reading.

Comments

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About the author

Antonio Ghislanzoni Author · Italian · 1824–1893

Antonio Ghislanzoni (1824–1893) was an Italian journalist, poet, novelist, and opera librettist, born in Lecco, Lombardy, and died in 1893. He studied medicine in his early years and worked as a baritone singer before editing periodicals such as L'Italia musicale and the Gazzetta musicale di Milano. He is best known for writing the libretto of Verdi's Aida and the revised libretto of La forza del destino, and produced some eighty-five librettos in all. He also wrote novels, including La contessa di Karolystria. Eleven of his works are held in this collection, among them Libro proibito, Libro segreto, Libro bizzarro, Libro allegro, Libro serio, and AbrakadabraL: Storia dell'avvenire, which display a varied style blending humor, satire, and imagination. His works are often classified under inspirational and personal-growth titles in Chinese book listings. Public information on his fiction and essays remains limited.