Gli zii di Sicilia
1958
First Published
3.91
Average Rating
233
Number of Pages
The expression 'Sicilian uncle' has the same sense in Italian as 'Dutch uncle' does in English, but with sinister overtones of betrayal and inconstancy. The four novellas in Sicilian Uncles (1958) political thrillers of a kind - are the first fruits of Sciascia's maturity. In these stories, illusions about ideology and history are lost in mirth, in suffering, and innocence is abandoned. Each novella has its historical moment: the Allied invasion of Sicily, the Spanish Civil War, the death of Stalin, the 'events' of 1948. These occasions and their consequences are registered in the lives of Sciascia's wonderfully drawn characters. Each has voice, wit, and a private history which open out onto the wider circumstances of his time, and hint towards the later work of Sciascia.
Avg Rating
3.91
Number of Ratings
697
5 STARS
27%
4 STARS
45%
3 STARS
22%
2 STARS
5%
1 STARS
1%
goodreads
Author
Leonardo Sciascia
Author · 33 books
Leonardo Sciascia (1921-1989) wrote of his unique Sicilian experience, linking families with political parties, the treachery of alliances and allegiances, and the calling of favours that resort in outcomes that are not for the benefit of society, but of those individuals who are in favour. Sciascia perhaps, in the end, wanted to prove that the corruption that was and is endemic in Italian society helps only those who are part of the secret societies and loyalties and the political classes.
