L'inventore di sogni

by Ian McEwan, Susanna Basso (Translator)

Peter Fortune è un sognatore a occhi aperti, un ragazzino che inventa avventure rocambolesche per sfuggire alla noia e alla normalità della sua vita. Immagina così di poter entrare nel corpo del gatto di casa e viverne per qualche giorno la vita, oppure di possedere una "pomata svanilina" capace di far scomparire tutta la famiglia. Con questo libro McEwan ritorna ai suoi luoghi d'origine, quando nella prima stagione della sua produzione dava forma alle inquietudini del mondo familiare, di cui bambini e adolescenti erano vittime, ma anche carnefici. Oggi però il modo con cui l'autore affronta i fantasmi e le paure dell'infanzia è cambiato; ne emerge una storia di intimità domestica caratterizzata da un tono sereno e sdrammatizzante.

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories, Fantasy, Childrens, Magical Realism, Young Adult, Contemporary

93 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1994

About the author

Ian McEwan studied at the University of Sussex, where he received a BA degree in English Literature in 1970 and later received his MA degree in English Literature at the University of East Anglia.

McEwan's works have earned him worldwide critical acclaim. He won the Somerset Maugham Award in 1976 for his first collection of short stories First Love, Last Rites; the Whitbread Novel Award (1987) and the Prix Fémina Etranger (1993) for The Child in Time; and Germany's Shakespeare Prize in 1999. He has been shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize for Fiction numerous times, winning the award for Amsterdam in 1998. His novel Atonement received the WH Smith Literary Award (2002), National Book Critics' Circle Fiction Award (2003), Los Angeles Times Prize for Fiction (2003), and the Santiago Prize for the European Novel (2004). He was awarded a CBE in 2000. In 2006, he won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for his novel Saturday and his novel On Chesil Beach was named Galaxy Book of the Year at the 2008 British Book Awards where McEwan was also named Reader's Digest Author of the Year.

McEwan lives in London.

Reviews

[Orsodimondo · Rating 3 out of 5]

SOGNI A OCCHI APERTI


Il protagonista Peter Fortune, daydreamer.

Lo si trova negli scaffali e stand della letteratura per l’infanzia: proprio come succede con quell’altro tentativo di libro per bambini di un’altra scrittrice molto per adulti, Elena Ferrante e il suo La spiaggia di notte.
Anche questi otto brevi racconti firmati da Ian McEwan sono considerati per lettori minorenni, addirittura proprio bambini, e invece sembrano piuttosto indirizzati a un pubblico maggiorenne.
A vantaggio della nostra, se così si può dire, c’è che le illustrazioni del libro inglese per quanto belle impallidiscono confrontate a quelle di Mara Cerri a corredo della ‘fiaba di Elena Ferrante



A vantaggio dello scrittore inglese rispetto alla scrittrice italiana c’è che McEwan non dimentica mai il suo buon sense of humour dannatamente 8e meravigliosamente, britannico.
E neppure il suo lato ‘macabre’, gotico tendente al nero. Due aspetti che almeno per gli adulti sono piacevoli e divertenti anche se in una lettura per bambini.

E penso che per leggere appena uscito un libretto per l’infanzia come questo, è la dimostrazione che ero nel pieno del mio periodo McEwan, quando lo leggevo in modo continuato e massiccio.

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Watch out! I’m coming down the street on my pogo stick!!

You want me to read a kid’s book? I don’t think so. Give me adult drama, the more messed up and angsty the better. Bad decisions, deceit, despair, sign me up. But I listened to Betsy, whom I thank profusely for letting me in on this secret collection of short stories by one of my favorite authors, Ian McEwan, and for suggesting I read it to the 9-year-old I sit for. I’ve never read anything aloud but picture books, and that was for the captive audience of my little kids, many moons ago. So I had my doubts.

I threw the idea out to the kid, half expecting her not to bite. I got a little nervous when she gave me an excited yes. Gulp. It’s happening. I told her, “Look, here’s the deal. If either of us hate the book, I’ll stop reading. Immediately.” I wanted to make it clear that this was extracurricular, optional. I wasn’t planning on torturing either of us. If she got antsy and started climbing the walls, I wasn’t going to sit there talking to myself. The kid reads a lot—she’s so cute walking around confidently holding the Kindle like she’s a college student—so I gambled that she’d understand and like the book. And she did.

Two pages in, and I was pretty much a goner. OMG is this a good book! Imaginative! Engrossing! Fun! It was strange hearing myself read. I had to try to slow down and speak clearly, things I never have to worry about when I read with my mouth shut. The weird thing is, I wasn’t distracted like I usually am. So if I talk to myself, I have better concentration? At least I know how to pay attention to myself, lol.

I read for an hour and a half straight, without even having to pee, and I saw that I was already halfway through this 200-page book of deliciousness. The kid, who at her age can still multi-task (the lucky dog), began weaving some sort of original pencil holder, and she listened intently, throwing out some good comments as she wove away.

The stories, oh the stories. McEwan is such a master! This is his only kid’s book and he wrote it back in the 1990s. He doesn’t dumb down, hallelujah. There are seven stories, all gems. I even love that they all have simple, two-word titles: The Dolls, The Cat, Vanishing Cream, The Bully, The Burglar, The Baby, and The Grown-Up. They are all about a boy named Peter who is a chronic daydreamer; he fantasizes some far-out situations, with himself as the star. Things are not what they appear to be. He turns things inside out, does some switching of beings, and explores different lives. I don’t want to say one more word about the stories because the surprise is part of the fun. My favorite is probably The Cat. The kid liked The Dolls the best. Not surprising; she’s a 9-year-old girl who knows all about having a room full of dolls.

The book took me back to being a child, the fun of imagining things. I used to have a ball with my imagination, though I’d get in trouble for too much daydreaming. Often I would write instead of read. In middle school we had to pick a book and then present a report on it in front of the class. I didn’t read a book, which horrified me. Miss goody-two-shoes here couldn’t let that be. I wanted an A, so a girl has to do what a girl has to do. I quickly made up a book with some kind of sci-fi plot, with characters who had bald heads. I made up an author name (way fun) and decided she was from England, thinking I was being pretty sly—surely the teacher doesn’t know of authors in a country as far away and exotic as England. Okay, it was my turn, so I proceeded to describe the imaginary book in front of the class. I had everything down on index cards so it looked official--and also so I could remember what I made up. After the report, there was a Q&A. I confidently answered everyone’s questions, making it up as I went along. I remember the teacher asking me about the author, and even though I was slightly terrorized that I’d somehow get busted, it was clear that even at a young age I could wing it. I did get an A, but I felt very guilty—though I admit I was a little smug that I’d pulled it off. I snowed my teacher and I also got to use my imagination, which was chomping at the bit.

But back to this book, which of course I did read (I swear it isn’t imaginary). There were a bunch of firsts for me: first time I read a book aloud, first time I read a book in two sittings, first time I got to share a book, to take it in at the exact same time that someone else is. I was a radio, except I got to listen to me, too.

This book had a profound effect on me. It told my imagination to just skip, baby, skip. It gave me permission to daydream again (and now that I’m retired, I have the time). Childhood memories and story ideas just raced through my head. I don’t think I’ve ever read a book that stirred up my imagination so much. Without question, the book went right on to my precious Blew My Mind shelf.

Time to go home. I was totally high on the book. I had to trade my car for a pogo stick and I hopped all the way down the winding Novelty Hill Road. I was just too wired and exhilarated to do anything but bounce.

Check this book out; maybe you’ll have an experience like mine. Each story in this collection takes you someplace exciting, fantastical, comfy, and wise. Get ready.

[Betsy Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delightful, delicious stories that appeal equally to adults and kids. Ian McEwan’s young protagonist, Peter Fortune, has a daydreaming habit—much the way most writers do or did in childhood. And every chapter is a daydreaming adventure. They are funny, moving, and impeccably written stories.

The appeal for kids is obvious in experiences of magical daydreams becoming real. The appeal for adults is a little harder to articulate, but it has to do with experiencing a sweetness of childhood that one may or may not have had in reality. For the duration of this book, that sweetness becomes one’s firsthand experience. Yum.

[Luca Ambrosino · Rating 4 out of 5]

ENGLISH (The Daydreamer) / ITALIANO

The school duties of my daughter, 9 years old, for the Christmas break included, this year, also a book of her choice to read. I suggested her "The Daydreamer" (or the art of mastering the imagination). It was fun to hear her call me once in a while, saying: "DO YOU KNOW THIS TIME WHAT'S PETER FORTUNE BEEN UP TO???".

Actually, this short book should be considered as a handbook to be used in adulthood. It could really come in handy.

Vote: 8

------------------------------------

I compiti per le vacanze di Natale di mia figlia, 9 anni, comprendevano, quest'anno, anche un libro a piacere da leggere. Le ho suggerito L'inventore di Sogni (o l'arte di saper davvero immaginare). E' stato divertente sentirsi chiamare ogni tanto da mia figlia ed ascoltarla esclamare a gran voce: "MA TU LO SAI CHE COSA HA COMBINATO PETER FORTUNE STAVOLTA???".

Questo piccolo libro dovrebbe essere un manuale da utilizzare in età adulta, in realtà. Potrebbe rivelarsi davvero utile.

Voto: 8

[Kevin · Rating 3 out of 5]

When a novel starts out rather dreadfully but gradually and steadily improves I am never really sure if it is the author who is finding their footing or if it is me who is subconsciously lowering my expectations.

Children’s books aren’t McEwen’s usual stock and trade and it shows. His early chapters, each a foray into the imagination of a nine year old boy, feel a wee bit stilted and contrived. Still, I like what McEwan is trying to do even if it is, at times, unwieldy and off the mark...

“..the burglar struck again, and carried off a box of expensive perfumed soap and a silver-topped walking-stick... The stick had belonged to her great-grandfather, a famously fierce missionary. He used it to beat African children when they didn’t study their Bible lessons.”

[Fátima Linhares · Rating 3 out of 5]

Este livrinho é um conjunto de sete pequenos contos/sonhos de Peter Fortune, um miúdo de 10 anos, calado e que gostava de pensar, aliás, perdia-se em pensamentos. São histórias engraçadas e cheias de imaginação, vividas na cabeça de Peter e a que ele nos deixa ter acesso.

[Cat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wish I had read this edition with the cat on the cover! McEwan writes spare, playful, and meditative prose in this book for children and for adults meditating on what it means to be a child and what it means to lose childhood but not to lose imagination. Each chapter centers on the relationship between the solitary child and other people and creatures. I like that solitude, perception, and imaginative leaps cause the child to bridge the gap between himself and others. Instead of suspecting that socialization is what makes us acknowledge other beings and other people, McEwan implicitly makes the opposite point, which is that understanding other subjectivities is always an imaginative leap, a speculation, so that the deepening of one's access to fantasy, however superficially isolating it might seem, also deepens the profundity of a connection to others. I'm making this book sound like less fun than it is, but I really loved the way McEwan subtly threaded this theme through each of his chapters. Much as in Atonement, though in a lighter register, he is interested in our accountability to others and our misplaced yet inevitable desire to boss them around (a desire most evident in a child who hasn't learned to dampen that impulse). McEwan also treats our exploration of the counterfactual as a form of access to other consciousnesses to which it might be difficult to cede control or primacy. That access to another consciousness--whether that of a cat, a school bully, or a baby--makes the narcissistic self abate in favor of compassion and wonder. For me, the most powerful two stories were that about the cat (are you surprised?) and the one about going to the seashore in the summer and having that breath-taking and frightening sensation that the timeless feeling of being a child is going to give in (erode?) to the regimented hours of adulthood. McEwan brought back strong sense memories to me of what it was like to play on the beach as a child, and I love that he doesn't just focus on loss but also reminds us of the wonders and adventures that adulthood imparts along with its workaday world doldrums. A simple book with a lot of warmth and philosophical grasp.

[Lynda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I once heard Ian McEwan described as a Marmite author; a distinctive taste that, in line with the Marmite marketing slogan, you either "Love it or hate it."

I must admit, I've had my share of "hit and miss" with McEwan but I did enjoy The Daydreamer, which is his first work of fiction for children. The book is described however as appealing to adults as well, due in part to the fact that it is an "adult" Peter who tells the story of his childhood.

The Daydreamer is about 10 year Peter Fortune who is a chronic daydreamer. He transforms boring events into elaborate stories in his head, making mundane situations more fun. Peter believes that the reality of his life can rarely live up to the things his mind concocts.

The Daydreamer is told in the form of seven interlinking stories, all of which reveal the secret journeys, metamorphoses and adventures of Peter's childhood.

What I particularly enjoyed about this book was that daydreaming was portrayed as an essential dimension of play, for adults and children alike. In daydreaming, we’re free to psychologically traverse through every obscure or far flung thought. We’re welcome to try on any solution or scenario that piques our interest at the moment.

Let's face it -- who hasn’t indulged in a little Walter Mitty style fantasy and not felt better – or at least been pleasantly amused – for it? Isn’t it how we become more fully ourselves?

So here's my suggestion for the day:

Make some time for losing yourself in thought. Drop everything and do it now, or schedule it if you have to. Don’t go to bed tonight without endeavoring some kind of cerebral journey. Your brain – and perhaps your well-being – will be the better for it.

3.5*/5

[Luís · Rating 3 out of 5]

This collection of short stories invites us to follow the daydreams of Peter, a 10-year-old boy. The stories are intelligent, inventive, and very well written. But I don't know why; I had trouble understanding these tales. However, this reading encourages me to discover other works by the same author.

[Ely Gocce di Rugiada · Rating 2 out of 5]

Il mio primo approccio con questo autore un flop . Proverò con altre opere.Una serie di racconti basati sullo stesso modus operandi: situazione di cambiamento, sogno per scappare dal mondo reale, " ritorno alla realtà al momento della risoluzione del problema.Letto il primo racconto, lo svolgersi degli altri diviene prevedibile.

[JimZ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a children’s novel but really can be read as short stories (and can be read by adults for a quick read 😊). The inside book cover states it is for children in Grade 3 and older. I liked this book. I would think it would be quite entertaining and fun for children to read.

Peter is 10 years old and has a younger sister Kate who is seven and they live with their mom and dad. Peter when he looks like he is doing nothing actually has his mind whirring away and is daydreaming. Chapter 1 sets up the reader for Peter being a daydreamer and the next seven chapters are the daydreams. In two of the stories he ends up leaving his body and occupying the body of a cat and of a baby. The baby story is pretty funny —gives new meaning to “walking in somebody else’s shoes”, in this case what Peter initially viewed as a whiny, troublesome, wailing baby.

I don’t think there’s a bad story in the bunch. This was Ian McEwan’s first foray into writing children’s books, and he succeeded I think rather admirably. Never would have read this book had it not been for a Goodreads friend who read it and wrote a really nice review that enticed me to read it. 😊

Reviews:
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Day...
• https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/... october 7, 1994 by Robert Winder
• https://britishbookcentre.wordpress.c...
• A long and comprehensive book review, WARNING: Do not read before reading the book because it gives detailed synopses of each of the chapters. https://www.bookreports.info/the-dayd...

[Cecily · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of related stories/chapters, telling incidents from the life of a boy of 10 - 11. Peter is a daydreamer and thus the boundaries between fact and fiction are often intriguingly blurred.

Three of the seven stories are body-swaps and you guess the gist of the one called “Vanishing Cream” from its title, so although the characters are quite good and the storytelling somewhat original, the stories themselves are not.

The one called “The Bully” would work well as a standalone piece and could make a useful talking point for children involved in (either side) of bullying.

This collection could easily be read by children Peter's age and a little younger, but is meant to be profound enough to appeal to adults. Although I would have enjoyed reading it to my kid, they're now too old, and I wouldn’t really recommend it as an adult book.

[Carina · Rating 5 out of 5]

precious. had a splendid night by myself reading this and being no less of a daydreamer than Peter...

[Alessandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

"E si lanciò di corsa verso la battigia. Si sentiva agile e leggerissimo sulla sabbia. 'Sto per prendere il volo' pensò.
Chissà se stava sognando, o se volava davvero."

[Rana Heshmati · Rating 2 out of 5]

من برش داشته بودم که همون شب تمومش کنم. ولی پنج روز طول کشید. اینقدر بی‌جاذبه :))🤦🏻‍♀️
و بیشترش متریال مناسب کابوس بود. این بهترین توصيفیه که ازش به ذهنم می‌رسه.

[Mihaela · Rating 5 out of 5]

O încântare, perfectă.

[Amirsaman · Rating 4 out of 5]

«سال‌ها از آدم‌بزرگ‌شدن خود پیتر گذشته بود که او بالاخره فهمید قضیه چه بود. آن‌ها فکر می‌کردند پیتر شر است چون او ساکت بود. انگار این مسئله مردم را اذیت می‌کرد. مشکل دیگر این بود که او دوست داشت تنها باشد. البته نه همیشه. حتی نه هر روز. ولی بیش‌تر روزها دلش می‌خواست یک ساعتی را بی‌سروصدا در اتاق خوابش یا پارک سرکند. خوشش می‌آمد تنها باشد و برای خودش فکر کند.»

«در واقع، به نظر او اگر مردم برای رفتن توی جمع دیگران یا آوردن دیگران توی جمع خودشان کم‌تر وقت صرف می‌کردند، و هر روز مدت کوتاهی تنها می‌ماندند و به یاد می‌آوردند چه کسی هستند یا چه کسی می‌توانند باشند، دنیا جای بهتری می‌شد و شاید دیگر جنگی رخ نمی‌داد.»
*
یک کتاب کودکان که برای آدم‌بزرگ‌ها نوشته شده. کتاب از زاویه‌دید دیگران نگریستن به قضایا را به مخاطبان کودکش آموزش می‌دهد، و، از زاویه‌دید کودکان نگریستن را به مخاطبان بزرگسالش آموزش می‌دهد.

[Aleksandra Fatic · Rating 4 out of 5]

O sanjarenju jednog jedanaestogodišnjeg dječaka, koja smo svi mi imali! Slatko, ali može se i preskočiti, ne bi bilo neke štete! Baš je za čitanje u prevozu i pauzama, ne zamara, nekoliko priča, u kojima se može naći i fina pouka, pa nek idu 4⭐️!

[MaguiWorld · Rating 3 out of 5]

Este libro comencé a leerlo porque es obligatorio en la facultad. No conocía ni al autor ni al libro hasta el momento en el que me dieron la lista con las lecturas.

La verdad es que es un buen libro, es interesante como nos hace ponernos en el lugar de un niño que se la pasa viviendo "en las nubes" (de ahí su nombre) y que por este motivo muchas veces se mete en problemas o es poco comprendido por sus pares y adultos. Fue una lectura ligera, con vocabulario sencillo y por eso creo que también esta bueno para los mas jóvenes.

No tiene grandes reflexiones en cada uno de sus cuentos, pero es muy divertido ver las ocurrencias que se imagina. Admito que en uno de ellos lloré y sentí un poco de calidez en mi corazón, pero toca un tema que es delicado para mi, el cual no voy a decir porque estaría spoileando.

Si buscan una lectura ligera, inocente y alocada... ¡Son más que bienvenidxs a las nubes!

[Frances · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the preface to The Daydreamer Ian McEwan asks if we adults really mean it when we say we like children’s literature or are we merely “speaking up for, and keeping the lines open to, our lost, nearly forgotten selves?” Mind you when he wrote this it was before the whole Harry Potter phenomenon – and there were plenty of adults who enjoyed curling up with that series. Still, the appeal to adults of Harry Potter might have been as much about the finely constructed plot and suspenseful narrative as the fantasy itself – its own inviting escape from the more mundane aspects of everyday adult existence. In contrast, The Daydreamer, McEwan explains, is a book for adults about a child in a language that children can understand. It’s a fantasy too as the title suggests, but it’s a fantasy that engages rather than escapes reality.

Peter, the almost decade old central character, is a dreamer, though his dreaming is not so much to take refuge from the world as it is a way to explore its curious and limitless possibilities. Peter’s dreaming is pure imaginative freedom – and it’s this propensity for quiet daydreaming that unsettles the grown-ups since they have no way to control what’s going on inside his head; “He could have been setting his school on fire or feeding his sister to an alligator and escaping in a hot air balloon, but all they saw was a boy staring at the blue sky without blinking, a boy who did not hear you when you called his name.”

The book is divided into chapters – each chapter its own story linked into the broader narrative of Peter and his family. During these adventures of the imagination Peter switches bodies with the family cat and later his baby cousin. He plots how to catch the neighborhood burglar with Roald Dahl-like inventiveness; confronts an unconventional bully using fantasy logic; and inhabits the body of his young adult self. Through each of these transformations we get to share Peter’s pleasure of viewing the world from another person’s (or animal’s in the case of the cat) perspective and also come to experience empathy and understanding in the process. Not unlike the adventure of reading itself.

And although this might appear to betray the book with well-meaning adult moral purpose, the only real message that The Daydreamer imparts is; imagine. Like the baby in the story who is overcome by the beauty of sunlight playing on a wall we are equally mesmerized by McEwan’s luminous storytelling – and the wonderfully real possibility of it all.

[Jelena · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jedna od onih knjiga s kojom se mozda i ne bih tako sazivila da mi nije dosla u pravom trenutku, i jedan Makjuan koji me vraca u davno zaboravljeni svijet: pun igre, maste i topline.

[Matteo Fumagalli · Rating 3 out of 5]

Videorecensione: https://youtu.be/KCY6XVofaMQ

[Deni · Rating 5 out of 5]

За първи път ми се случва в похода ми с повторното запознаване и опознаване на световните класици да кликна толкова със сборник с разкази. През цялото време ме люшкаше блага носталгия по детските ми години, когато всяко нещо беше магично, фантастично. И малко зловещо и страшно. Но вълнуващо и оживяващо. Нямам търпение да подхвана "Изкуплението". Има автори, които са невероятни в писането на къси истории и такива, които са велики в писането на романи. Определено ми е любопитно да разбера към кои спада Макюън.

[Peiman · Rating 1 out of 5]

خب از خوندن این کتاب خوشحال نیستم. با اینکه حتی مشکلی با خوندن کتابهای نوجوانان ندارم به نظرم سطح این کتاب در حد بچه های ده ساله بود. داستان پسری ده یازده ساله که با خواهر کوچکتر و پدر و مادرش زندگی میکنه و بسیار خیال پردازه و داستانها این خیال پردازی رو با واثعیت مخلوط کرده

[Sandra Deaconu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nu sunt fană a realismului magic, așa că nu am fost prea încântată de majoritatea povestirilor, dar m-am regăsit de multe ori în felul de-a fi al lui Peter. A nu se citi dacă nu aveți o imaginație bogată!

,,A înțeles abia mai târziu, după mulți ani petrecuți ca adult. L-au crezut dificil pentru că era extrem de tăcut. Asta părea să-i deranjeze pe oameni. Cealaltă problemă era că-i plăcea să petreacă timpul de unul singur. Nu mereu, se-nțelege. Nici măcar în fiecare zi. Dar în majoritatea zilelor îi plăcea să se retragă preț de o oră undeva, la el în dormitor sau în parc. Îi plăcea să fie singur și să-și gândească gândurile."

,,Cât despre faptul că stătea de unul singur, nici asta nu prea le plăcea adulților. Nu le place nici când alți adulți preferă singurătatea. Când li te alături, oamenii pot să-și dea seama ce hram porți. Porți același hram ca și ei. Trebuie să li te alături, altfel le strici tuturor cheful. Peter avea alte idei. Era în regulă să te alături altora atunci când e cazul. Dar prea se-ntâmplă tot timpul."

,,Dacă viața e un vis, atunci moartea trebuie să fie momentul când te trezești."

,,Într-o bună zi va fi o persoană complet diferită. Avea să i se întâmple atât de încet, încât nici nu va observa, iar când transformarea va fi completă, sinele lui nemaipomenit și jucăuș de la unsprezece ani va fi la fel de departe, la fel de ciudat și greu de înțeles cum îi păreau lui acum adulții. Și, cu aceste gânduri triste, adormi."

[Carmen · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5❤
Dopo questa lettura, mi piacerebbe davvero tanto leggere altro dell'autore. Consigli?

[Djali · Rating 2 out of 5]

2,5

[gufo_bufo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ho sempre guardato con diffidenza i minimalisti, convinta come sono che se un libro è bello, più ce n'è e meglio è. D'altra parte devo ammettere che se un libro non mi piace, che sia breve è un sollievo. Purtroppo, questo mi piace: per la sua sottile perfidia nel disegnare le figure dei genitori un po' ottusi (la maggior parte dei ragazzini che ho conosciuto, a partire da me quand'ero bambina, è fermamente convinta che il suo nucleo familiare sia composto da minus habentes) e la sorellina superiore e implacabile; per il sapore così inglese dell'ambientazione e della pedagogia; per gli echi che mi ha risvegliato nella memoria. C'è dentro un po' di Adrian Mole, un po' di Calvin & Hobbes (con la sua tigre che è di pezza solo in presenza degli adulti, mentre di solito è un vivo, vivissimo compagno di giochi avventure e risse), un po' di Roald Dahl, che grazie a Dio ha fatto piazza pulita del molliccio perbenismo disneyano e ha messo in scena dell'infanzia anche le paure, gli odi e le schifezze.
Di solito, se mi piace un libro di 117 pagine, che poi finisce subito, mi sento un po' fregata. Ma in questo caso la leggerezza del racconto ed il ripetersi del semplice schema narrativo un capitolo dopo l'altro non avrebbero sopportato una mole maggiore: farsi 700 pagine su questo argomento sarebbe intollerabile come strafogarsi due chili e mezzo di zucchero filato, mentre questa misura è perfetta.

[Mariaelena Di Gennaro · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stelline e mezzo.

"Dal canto suo Peter, crescendo, imparò che, siccome la gente non riesce a vedere che cosa ti sta passando nel cervello, la cosa migliore per farsi capire, è dirglielo. E così incominciò a scrivere alcune delle avventure che gli capitavano mentre guardava dalla finestra o se ne stava sdraiato a fissare il cielo. Da grande diventò un inventore e scrittore di storie e visse una vita felice. In questo libro, troverete qualcuna delle imprese accadute dentro la testa di Peter, trascritte con fedeltà assoluta all’originale".

Un McEwan delicatissimo che presta la sua voce inconfondibile ai sogni di un bambino eternamente perso nel suo mondo, dove avventure rocambolesche e dalle tinte spesso angoscianti, lo salvano dalla monotonia della vita quotidiana.
Un libricino molto originale e che si legge in un soffio!
Ci si affeziona a Peter e alla sua strampalata fantasia e siamo con lui attoniti e curiosi passeggeri di tutti i suoi viaggi visionari.
Nonostante io sia un po' fuori target, mi sono goduta comunque la storia e poi leggere Ian McEwan è sempre un piacere e un privilegio.
Concludo con una citazione per me bellissima legata all'immagine del libro che più mi ha commosso:

"E oltre tutto questo umano fermento, l'oceano si gonfiava e si ripiegava, perché a nulla e nessuno è dato di restare fermo, non agli uomini, non all'acqua e neppure al tempo."

[PyaeSoneOo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Have you ever wake up from dreaming an adventure? Well……this book is about what Peter Fortune, the kid, dreams. The amusing adventures took place in Peter’s dreams. The author described the actions well and very clear. This book is totally fun to read. The adventures and the lessons plus the humorous actions will entertain you a lot. Readers of fantasy will probably like to read this book.