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The Decameron

By Giovanni Boccaccio
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Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
The Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio is a classic work of literature composed of a collection of 100 tales. Set during the Black Death in Florence, the stories are told by a group of ten young people—seven women and three men—who seek refuge in a secluded villa to escape the plague. The tales, shared over ten days, cover a wide range of themes, including love, tragedy, wit, and morality, offering an insightful look into medieval society.
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Format: Paperback / softback
$3199
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book may appeal to you if you enjoy a captivating collection of tales set in Italy during the medieval period, woven with themes of love, wit, and fortune. With its blend of humour, satire, and a touch of the fantastical, it's perfect for those who appreciate classic storytelling with lively characters and insightful reflections on human nature.

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“Rebhorn deserves our gratitude for an eminently persuasive translation...I celebrate his accomplishment.”—Edith Grossman

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

The year is 1348. The Black Death has begun to ravage Europe. Ten young Florentines—seven women and three men—escape the plague-infested city and retreat to the countryside around Fiesole. In this isolated and bucolic setting, they spend ten days telling each other stories—tales of romance, tragedy, comedy, and farce—one hundred in all. The result, described by one critic as "the greatest short story collection of all time" (Leonard Barkan, Princeton University), is a rich and entertaining celebration of the medley of medieval life.

Witty, earthy, and filled with bawdy irreverence, the one hundred stories of The Decameron offer more than simple escapism; they are also a life-affirming balm for trying times. The Decameron is a joyously comic book that has earned its place in world literature not just because it makes us laugh, but more importantly because it shows us how essential laughter is to the human condition.

Published on the 700th anniversary of Boccaccio's birth, Wayne A. Rebhorn's new translation of The Decameron introduces a generation of readers to this "rich late-medieval feast" in a "lively, contemporary, American-inflected English" (Stephen Greenblatt, Harvard University) while retaining the distinctly medieval flavour of Boccaccio's rhetorically expressive prose.

An extensive introduction provides useful details about Boccaccio's historical and cultural milieu, the themes and particularities of the text, and the lines of influence flowing into and out of this towering monument of world literature.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

The Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio is lauded as a vibrant and rich depiction of life in the late medieval period, described as a celebration of the joy of living. Its new translation by Rebhorn receives praise for its fluidity and elegance, with the introduction and notes being highly commended for honouring the work's original essence.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780393350265

Publisher: WW Norton & Co

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 25 January 2015

Country: United States

Imprint: WW Norton & Co

Contributors:

  • Translated by Wayne A. Rebhorn

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 43.0mm

Width: 140.0mm

Height: 208.0mm

Weight: 745g

Pages: 1024

Collections

Classic Fiction Fiction General Fiction Giovanni Boccaccio Literary Fiction

About the Author

Wayne A. Rebhorn is the Celanese Centennial Professor of English at the University of Texas, where he teaches English, Italian, and comparative literature. His translation of Boccaccio’s Decameron won the 2014 PEN Center USA’s Literary Award for Translation.

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  • The Decameron
    In the summer of 1348, as the Black Death ravages their city, ten young Florentines take refuge in the countryside. They amuse themselves by each telling a story a day for the ten days they are destined to remain there—a hundred stories of love, adventure, and surprising twists of fate. Less preoccupied with abstract concepts of morality or religion than...
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    The Decameron has had numerous English translations, most of them bowdlerised or reliant on corrupt texts. The challenge is to move gracefully between the widely varying idioms employed for different tales, and Rebhorn is notably successful in handling this, avoiding both an excess of slack colloquialism and the pish-tush-forsooth faux-antique of earlier renderings. The achievement genuinely honours its original. JONATHAN...
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