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Jaunā līgava

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Pagājušā gadsimta sākums. No tālienes ierodas saderinātā Līgava, lai gatavotos kāzām. Ekstravagantā Ģimene gandrīz izklaidīgi to uzņem savā elegantajā ārpilsētas rezidencē. Dēla nav uz vietas, viņš rūpējas par plaukstošā tekstiluzņēmuma darījumiem Anglijā un tikai sūta savādas un apjomīgas dāvanas. Jaunā Līgava viņu gaida, iekļāvusies nama nemainīgajos un rituālajos paradumos, starp kuriem sevišķi izceļas bagātīgas un ilgas brokastis. Šajās dienas stundās valda līksms satraukums un dzirkstošs prieks, kam precīzs pretstats ir mokošais nemiers un krampjainās bailes, kuru varā ir nakts stundas. Saskaņā ar leģendu jau paaudžu paaudzēs visi Ģimenes locekļi allaž ir miruši tieši naktīs. Par to, lai namā ierastie ritmi tiktu ievēroti, gādā majordoms Modesto. Tēvocis vienmēr ir aizmidzis, bet pa miegam izsaka īpaši trāpīgas frāzes. Tēvs dienas vada mazkustīgā mierā, baidīdamies no sirdskaites, bet reizi nedēļā dodas uz bordeli. Meita cīnās pret nakts murgiem. Mātei svarīgāks par visu ir pašas leģendārais skaistums. Viss, šķiet, riņķojam ap Dēla gaidīšanu. Un šajās gaidās ikviens personāžs cenšas atrast glābiņu sev pašam.

224 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2015

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About the author

Alessandro Baricco

102 books3,964 followers
Alessandro Baricco is an Italian writer, born at Torino in 1958. He's the author of several works, including the novels Lands of Glass (Selezione Campiello Award and Prix Médicis Étranger), Ocean Sea (Viareggio Prize), Silk, City, Emmaus or Mr. Gwyn, among others.

He is also the author of the majestic rewrite of Homer’s Iliad, the theatrical monologue Novecento, the essays Next: On Globalization and the World to Come or The Game.

Baricco hosted the book program "Pickwick" for Rai Tre, which, according to Claudio Paglieri, "invited Italians to rediscover the pleasure of reading." In 1994, he founded a school of "writing techniques" in Turin called Holden (as a tribute to Salinger), which, under his direction, has been a resounding success. Since the publication of Silk, which has become a long-standing bestseller both in Italy and internationally, Baricco has established himself as one of the great Italian writers of the new generations.

He was awarded the Fondazione Il Campiello Prize in 2020 and the Penna d’Oro Prize in 2022 for his body of work.

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5 stars
980 (19%)
4 stars
1,591 (31%)
3 stars
1,567 (31%)
2 stars
624 (12%)
1 star
222 (4%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 529 reviews
Profile Image for stefano.
188 reviews160 followers
November 14, 2019
Io non ci ho capito niente. C'è la Sposa, lo Zio, il Padre, la Madre, la Famiglia, il Fratocugino e il Figlio. Ogni tanto si accoppiano tra di loro e si infilano la mano nel sesso. C'è pure Modesto. Vanno al bordello. Ci sono storpi e sordomuti. Mangiano colazioni, al plurale. Nel frattempo il narratore passa dalla terza alla prima e dalla prima alla terza, neanche fosse una vecchietta con la Panda. Si sentiva la puzza della frizione del mio cervello, a cercare di acchiappare il filo. Il discorso diretto c'è e non c'è, di certo non ci sono virgolette o caporali per aprire e chiudere. Spunta pure Baricco stesso, a un certo punto. E pare di vederlo, con il suo faccino vispo: toh, cretino, mi hai lasciato quindici euro per leggere 'ste cazzate. Senza virgolette, ça va sans dire. Sì, il Baricco lo si vede proprio, fa capolino da ogni riga: mo' ci sparo due idiozie, un parolone, una frase senza senso, una robetta che si appiccicano su Facebook, una locuzione che eccita i liceli e fa cacciare a mamma' i millemila euro necessari per iscriverli alla mia Scuola Holden. Roba tipo questa: Gli orizzonti svaporavano sogni tremolanti. I vestiti si appiccicavano alla pelle. Gli animali si trascinavano dimentichi.. Svaporavano sogni tremolanti? Gli orizzonti? E gli animali dimentichi? Di che cosa? Prendete Ionesco, aggiungeteci due tocchi di Beckett, un pezzetto di D'Annunzio, tre prese di un poeta francese a casaccio, farcite per bene con la discografia completa di Battiato et voila, un Baricco pronto pronto da mettere in libreria. Forse.

In questo periodo cito spesso il Poeta, per cui altro non posso fare che ricordare le magie di moda delle religioni orientali che da noi nascondono soltanto vuoti di pensiero. Ecco, se fossi poeta anche io, o almeno un minibaricchino, potrei dire che le magie di moda dei lirismi letterari nascondono soltanto dei vuoti di scrittura. Ma non lo sono, Poeta, e quindi non lo dico. Mi accontento di ripetere, ancora una volta, che non ci ho capito niente. È uno scherzo, questo libro? È una roba dell'assurdo e quindi non c'è niente da capire? Ma se così fosse, che senso ha scrivere un romanzo dell'assurdo nel 2015? Come se io dipingessi dei barattoli di zuppa, oggi. Oppure è pieno zeppo pregno denso saturo (non è che solo Baricco conosce un sacco di parole) di significati ma sono io tonto e non ne afferro nemmeno uno? Vi prego, rendetemi edotto. Aspetto spiegazioni. Nel fratemmpo, dopo aver svaporato due sogni tremolanti, apro un libro a caso di Bukowski e torno terra terra: ho volato troppo alto e ho bisogno di birra, sigarette, risse e puttane. Di quelle che non hanno il sesso però, ma una molto poco lirica e di certo più prosaica figa.

(Comunque secondo me Baricco ci sta prendendo tutti per il culo, me per primo).
Profile Image for ΑνναΦ.
91 reviews6 followers
April 11, 2015
Ogni tanto devo leggere un contemporaneo italiano, mi sono detta. Cosa potrebbe essere migliore di questo stilnovista, questo Dante redivivo, autore inconcepibilmente prolifico e pubblicato, nonché Meastro della nouvelle vague della scrittura contemporanea? E dunque, eccomi qui.
*

Non ci sono più gli onesti artigiani di una volta, che a forza di taglia e cuci, ti strutturavano un libello degno di due ore di onesto passatempo. Oddio, quanto a taglia e cuci, anche qui c'è e si vedono pure le cuciture, idee balzane sparate a caso, probabilmente copiate (ops) da qualche libro che il nosto ineffabile stilnovista stava leggendo (perchè il nostro è anche uomo di buone letture, putroppo però si ostina a scrivere...). Una: la noia. La noia che deriva dallla mancanza di Grazia, quella da cui ti senti toccato quando leggi qualcuno che ha talento, non lo sai circoscrivere definire, ma lo senti e dentro di te, ti dici “però, questo sa scrivere”. Ecco, qui non lo dici. Due: l'urticamnte insoffrenza, che provi quando senti che è tutto forzato, finto, come chi sia ostina a cercare di...senza averne i mezzi. Ci sono cose che non si imparano. E non si insegnano, o ce le hai innate o pazienza, usa le mani per fare altro (l'orto?), invece il nostro stilnovista si ostina soprattutto ad insegnare; certo è redditizio, quindi qui va capito, ma non scusato. Tre: ma copia? Oltre ad essere un furbastro che insegna trucchi per arpionare il lettore (regola aurea della Sua Scuola – ma la dovrei scrivere con la Q – é iniziate sempre con una scena che attragga e lasciatela in sospeso, serve a far abboccare il lettore boccalone tipo carpa presa all'amo. Poi mollatelo lì e divagate). Copia Houellebecq, con queste scene di sesso ridicole (quelle di Houellebecq sono almeno ossessive)? Copiando Houellebecq, secondo me, copia pure male: non ha il substrato nichilista che ha lo scrittore francese.... Poi, ciliegina sulla torta, volendo strafare, mi sembra anche che cerchi di esser post-moderno, da stilnovista qual è un bell'arrembaggio.

In sostanza: sòla. Non posso dire di essere delusa poerchè non mi aspettavo nulla di buono, ma nemmeno di così insulso e irritante. Tuttavia, ai tempi dei best seller scritti a tavolino con un colpo di scena ogni tot pagine, ai tempi di Dan Brown, insomma, sicuramente molti lo leggereanno e alcuni pure chioseranno: “Be', CAPOLAVORO, dài!” (cit.).

Profile Image for Iulia.
300 reviews40 followers
November 27, 2024
Mireasa tânãrã sau trupurile dicteazã, restul e doar urmarea fireascã, firul fragil si nesigur de la care porneste prezentul si viitorul. Totul începe cu "mişcarea animalicã a unui trup - o înclinaţie, o ranã, o desfigurare, uneori un gest sclipitor, deseori instincte obscene care vin de departe. E deja totul scris acolo. Gândurile vin dupã aceea si sunt întotdeauna o hartã târzie, cãreia îi atribuim, convențional şi din obosealã, o oarecare precizie."
M-am umplut ṣi mi-am umplut câteva zile cu acest tratat despre iubire, am savurat acest Baricco neaşteptat de erotic si de elegant în acelaşi timp. Un poem în prozã servil şi regal, în egalã mãsurã ruşinos şi curajos. O combinaţie încântãtoare.
Profile Image for Gabril.
1,043 reviews255 followers
September 4, 2018
Ma perché Baricco si ostina a cimentarsi con il romanzo quando gli basterebbe essere quel che è: un ottimo divulgatore (e manager) e un dignitoso critico/ saggista? Forse è percorso nella sua intima fibra da un doloroso pungolo che gli impone l’autoflagellazione, ma soprattutto lo sfracello di cabasisi dei suoi lettori e lettrici?
Qui il nostro indefettibile autore si cimenta con l’ennesimo esercizio di stile che questa volta ha come argomento clou il sesso. Il bello è che il baricco-narratore lo dichiara spudoratamente. Cosa? Che sta facendo esercizio, avventurandosi nella descrizione considerata più impervia, quella del sesso, appunto. Il risultato sono quattro schiette risate e molta molta noia.
Profile Image for Roberto.
627 reviews1 follower
August 2, 2017

Beh? Cosa mi vorrebbe dire?

I protagonisti di questo romanzo si chiamano come il ruolo che rappresentano: sono il Padre, la Madre, il Figlio, la Figlia, lo Zio e la Sposa giovane. Il luogo e l'epoca in cui vivono è indeterminato.

Il Figlio, vent’anni, e la Sposa giovane, diciotto, devono sposarsi dopo un fidanzamento durato tre anni; solo che quando lei ritorna dall'Argentina dove è stata per stare col padre, lui non c'è, è in Inghilterra per lavoro. Tornerà, dovrebbe tornare, forse torna, torna?

Cosa trova la Sposa giovane quando arriva? Una strana situazione: in Famiglia si teme la notte poiché tutti i parenti sono morti nel sonno, è vietato leggere libri, non bisogna essere tristi perché è inutile e si fa colazione in pigiama per tutto il giorno. La Madre parla in modo strano, il Padre è indolente, la Figlia storpia, lo Zio narcolessico e le giornate passano in una attesa spensierata diurna e nell'angoscia disperata notturna.

Cosa succede durante questa lunga attesa? La Sposa giovane esperisce l'arte della masturbazione in coppia, si reca al bordello frequentato dagli uomini della famiglia, impara. Cosa impara? A mettere le dita in bocca dopo averle passate nel sesso di un'altra donna, a non lavarsi, l'arte della seduzione (sempre spiegata da una donna e sempre con le dita...), ad attendere il futuro sposo facendo marchette, i sette metodi per procurare l'orgasmo ad omosessuali inconsapevoli.

Tutto qui? Beh, sì, tutto qui.

Ma scritto bene però!

In uno stile che ammicca molto al realismo magico sudamericano, le parole si rincorrono, si fermano, si aggrovigliano e si riaccendono. Narrazione pura e lirica che sommerge una vicenda che non esiste.

Ma Baricco fa capolino, cambia bruscamente la voce narrante e si mette a parlare in prima persona. Cosa dice? Mah. Cosa centra col romanzo quello che dice? Mah.

Cosa ci rimane al termine della lettura? L'impressione che manchi qualcosa. Che il "bello scrivere" copra un vuoto di contenuti. Qui non è una questione di tanto sesso. E' una questione di tanto vuoto.

Alcuni libri di Baricco mi sono piaciuti. Ma questo no, proprio no.
Profile Image for Christian.
30 reviews
September 16, 2017
While reading this novel, I felt as if I was dreaming. Between realities at times, everything flowed effortlessly. A wonderful dream.
Profile Image for Michela De Bartolo.
163 reviews88 followers
December 9, 2018
In questo libro l’autore esordisce con una fastidiosa ostentazione della lingua italiana : frasi forzatamente pensate , strutturate e macchinose solo in seguito a queste prime 100 pagine , si entra nella storia . Una storia strana , fatta di personaggi improbabili senza nome , ma definiti dal loro ruolo : Padre , madre , figlia ed eccola che bussa alla porta una giovane donna : “Sono la sposa Giovane , dissi “ . L’autore modifica ripetutamente la voce narrante e questi passaggi mi hanno mandato spesso in confusione e a tratti mi hanno annoiata , però in compenso ha usato un modo elegante di narrare vicende erotiche senza mai sfociare nella volgarità. Peccato però che nonostante questi virtuosismi di fondo ho constatato una trama senza senso , galleggiante, con personaggi marionette . Cercherò di dare un’altra possibilità a Baricco , visto che il mio primo approccio non è stato positivo.
Profile Image for Marc Lamot.
3,462 reviews1,976 followers
July 4, 2019
It took a while before I had made up my mind whether I liked this book or not, due to the 'oddness' of this book. It starts with the title: “the young Bride”, in Italian (I read this in Italian) “La Sposa giovane”, that is clearly a nod to one of the Italian classics, the first great Romantic novel of the 19th century, “The Betrothed” (I promessi sposi) by Manzoni. That is immediately setting the bar high, or at least pretending to do so.

The setting in which Baricco places the story is a bourgeois family with an unnamed Father, Mother, Daughter, Son and Uncle, and a very old servant, Modesto, the only one who bears a name (he’s also the most human one). The intriguing thing is that this family seems to live the "perfect life": everything is arranged to perfection and everyone knows their place. But soon alarm bells are ringing: the family seems to have an obsession with night and death, because it appears that all former family members died at night, never during the day; therefore every morning the relief is so great that extra attention is paid to breakfast (which is juggled until 3 o'clock in the afternoon!), and for the same reason books are also forbidden, because "there is no need for palliative drugs" (as a sarcastic comment, that can count).

Then suddenly the Fiancé (the young bride) shows up at the doorstep: an 18-year-old girl; 3 years before she conquered the heart of the Son of the family and promised to return when she had reached the proper marriage age. Problem: the Son is in England now, or at least, the Family thinks so; but no problem, he will return any time. At this point of the story, the author (Baricco himself?) has already come into the picture several times, in discussion with friends about what he is writing, and for the sake of fun he occasionally changes the 3rd storyteller's point of view with the perspective of the Fiancé herself.

What follows is a bizarre succession of fairly explicit erotic scenes, focussing on the "initiation" of the Fiancé, an initiation taken in hands by both the Sister, the Mother and the Father. At least a strange affair, no? Meanwhile, the waiting for the Son continues, or rather, it becomes more doubtful that that Son will ever show up. I will not, of course, reveal the outcome, and to be honest, it does not seem to matter that much.

What is important is that the author of this writing again pops up in the novel a few times, and at a certain point it appears that his almost finished manuscript of this book has been lost; but no worries, he just puts it on paper again, out of his memory, a version that according to him is “more pure”. And also: very bizarre scenes keep popping up on a regular basis, such as that of the Uncle (who is not really an uncle) who while sleeping cooks and serves an exquisite dinner for the Fiancé after which they have pretty fierce sex (yes, him sleeping all while) . "Il faut le faire", the French say.

In short: Baricco seems more than ever to have done his best to make it clear to the reader that a writer really matters in literature, and that - if he feels like it - he simply presents the most extraordinary things to the reader, who has to accept them as a basic part of the story. Perhaps this is a late revenge of Baricco on all those literary experts who have declared the author irrelevant. In this sense the very last sentence of this novel ("I ask the questions here!") is like Baricco, not the Fiancé, is talking to us.

Personally, I really don't like this kind of virtuoso postmodern experiments; I just don't care. But I have to concede that the word virtuoso is in place: Alessandro Baricco can really write and - if he wants - can create the most brilliant scenes (in beautiful Italian by the way). So, a bit cowardly, I’ll go for an average score. (2.5 stars)
Profile Image for Kristīne.
805 reviews1 follower
October 27, 2019
Gadu laikā Bariko esmu deklarējusi kā vienu no saviem mīļākajiem autoriem, bet pēc šīs grāmatas jāsaka, tas bija sen un vairs nav taisnība.

Sirdī man uz mūžīgiem laikiem paliks "Okeāns jūra", kur savijušies forma ar jūras toņu krāsainajiem varoņiem, un tā ir teju vienīgā Bariko grāmata, kurai atceros arī sižetu.

Jaunā līgava gan šķita tas pats vecais Bariko, sižetiski mazliet no Zīda, tie paši bezgala skaistie teikumi un atsevišķas epizodes, bet stāsts tāds, kas uzdod jautājumu - kam tas viss? Un tad vēl pa vidu tā rakstnieka parādīšanās, atceros, kad vidusskolā rakstīju sacerējumus, un gadījās kāds grūtāks temats, lai pārvarētu vārdu blokādi, vienkārši frīstailoju pa vidu par to, cik grūti man rakstīt. Tad kad parādījās teikumi par tēmu, pārējo izdzēstu (nu pārsvītroju...). Tāpat Bariko, aizbildinoties, ka viņš taču ir rakstnieks, un var darīt, kā grib, atstāj šīs dienasgrāmatīgās lapas. Man tas izskatījās pēc slinkuma. Slinkums rediģēt, atmest visu lieko, lobīt to sīpolu līdz galam.

Bet nu jā, teikumi tāpat paliek skaisti.
Profile Image for Jean Ra.
415 reviews1 follower
December 13, 2024
La verdad es que no sé ni por dónde comenzar, no me lo explico, es complicado poner las cartas sobre la mesa por qué no sé si existen esas cartas, el caso es que los dos últimos días de la lectura he pasado del escepticismo inicial, a la tolerancia intermedia y luego ya ha resultado de lo más plácido retomar cada vez la lectura, alargar los plazos para mejor saborear, sacar tiempo de otras cosas para simplemente avanzar otro tramo más, así que supongo que, en comparación con otros libros de Baricco, por ejemplo Seda, que he leído con un tibio agrado, debo otorgarle algún tipo de reconocimiento a nivel personal. Por que sí, efectivamente, me ha gustado bastante pero es una chorrada notoria.

Es la historia de una mujer de 18 años que llega a una mansión campestre de una familia de industriales porque se ha prometido con el primogénito. Los personajes no reciben nombres, sólo son referidos por su parentesco. El padre, la madre, el tío, la hija, el hijo y la esposa joven. Sólo lo recibe Modesto, el criado, personaje que supongo que es una imitación al típico mayordomo inglés, al estilo Jeeves, eficiente, discreto y con un punto de ironía. De hecho esta novela también tiene esos diálogos burbujeantes de ironía bufa que tanto le gustan a Baricco y que no prescinde de ellos ni a punta de escopeta. El hijo fue enviado a Inglaterra a aprender e imitar de las industrias inglesas, de modo que cuando llega la Esposa joven él no está y le toca esperar a que reaparezca una vez ha sido convocado por telegrama.

En manos de Baricco, debe insuflar numerosas excentricidades y extravagancias para caracterizar todo ello. Por ejemplo, esa familia tiene un pánico cerval a la noche, muchos antepasados murieron de noche y por eso, cuando llega el día, lo celebran con desayunos que son banquetes muy opíparos y que se alargan hasta las tres de la tarde. El padre visita de tanto en tanto el prostíbulo cercano a pesar que sufre del corazón. La madre por lo visto causó revuelo en su juventud gracias a su imponente físico. El personaje del tío siempre está durmiendo mientras está con los demás pero igualmente siempre se desvela unos instantes para hacer un comentario acorde con la conversación.

Una cosa que supongo que le han reprochado a la novela es que los personajes femeninos están diseñados desde una mirada masculina. Baricco a lo mejor las hipersexualiza para dotarlas de libre albedrío y costumbres más liberales, oponiéndose así a visiones más retrógradas, sin embargo es verdad que están cortadas por un patrón muy específico. Por otra parte, el tema de la novela sin duda es la libertad en relación con el cuerpo. La historia personal de la Esposa joven también es una novela de maduración, en el que ella abandona el mundo infantil para conquistar su sexualidad como adulta (insisto que eso ocurre mientras el Hijo, su prometido, no aparece), aprendiendo ciertas lecciones acerca del mundo adulto, en el fondo existe cierta justificación y razón, no es tan baboso como algún que otro escritor que ronda por ahí y que no nombraré como ahora Arturo Pérez-Reverte.

Todo ello lo he encajado más o menos, sin entusiasmo. Pero dónde la novela ha comenzado a agradarme no ha sido tanto en cómo la voz narradora salta a la primera persona de la esposa joven como cuando salta a la primera persona de la voz que se supone es la de Baricco, de tanto en tanto el escritor rompe el artificio, reflexiona sobre la conveniencia de una frase u otra o cuenta que se olvidó el ordenador en un minibús y que lo que escribe es lo que recuerda que escribió en ese primer momento. También se nombra varias veces El Quijote y no es un prurito pedante, entiendes que todos los personajes a su manera es gente de psicología singular, que habitan en el mundo bajo ideas muy propias, a veces en contra del sentido común, y por supuesto la novela a nivel estético también se reivindica como artificio y se maneja con diferentes estilos tal y cómo hizo Cervantes. Todo ello le entrega en el tramo final un aire festivo a la narración que se compenetra con la elevación que también experimenta el desarrollo de la historia de la Esposa joven y esa casa de gente quijotesca.

Por lo tanto sencillamente me rindo. Es la peor novela a la que le he dado cuatro estrellas pero leerla ha sido un gusto, un placer culpable... y ya sé que no hay culpabilidad en el placer, pero da igual, ya se entiende a qué me refiero.
Profile Image for Arwen56.
1,218 reviews336 followers
March 25, 2015
Il fatto è che alcuni scrivono libri, altri li leggono: sa dio chi è nella posizione migliore per capirci qualcosa.
Alessandro Baricco


Azzardo un’ipotesi, messer Lisander: quelli che intendono comunicare tra loro?

Senza offesa, eh!?! Perché io resto, comunque, una sua estimatrice, mi creda. Ma, qui, non mi è piaciuto mica tanto, sa? Qualche buon passaggio indubbiamente c’è anche, ma l’insieme è parecchio sconclusionato. Va di lì e va di là. Si passa dalla terza alla prima persona, dal passato al presente e dal qui all’altrove senza soluzione di continuità. Si fa un po’ fatica a seguirla, onestamente. E, arrivati all’ultima pagina, cascano anche un po’ le palle, perché non si capisce bene per quale motivo ci si sia assunti l’onere del suddetto travaglio. Benché a tratti sia accattivante, il giuoco non vale certo la candela, come si suol dire. Sono sicura che, a ben pensarci, lei stesso ne converrà.

E poi chiuda tutte le parentesi che crede. Anche dieci, se lo ritiene opportuno, e non solo quattro.
;-))
Profile Image for Vaso.
1,753 reviews225 followers
May 2, 2023
Μια νεαρή κοπέλα, ετών 18, φτάνει στο σπίτι της οικογένειας. Συστήνεται ως η νεαρή νύφη και όλοι την υποδέχονται, μιας κι ο γιος απουσιάζει στο εξωτερικό. Κάθε μέλος της οικογένειας έχει την ιστορία του και τις ιδιατερότητές του κι ολοι τους διατηρούν την ανωνυμία τους: ο πατέρας, η μητέρα, η κόρη, ο γιος..μόνο ο οικονόμος μας συτήνεται με το όνομά του. Οι μέρες κυλούν σε σχεδόν γιορτινή ατμόσφαιρα, μιας κι η νύχτα κρύβει φόβο...φόβο και θάνατο...Ο θάνατος, έρχεται μόνο νύχτα κι οι ένοικοι της βίλας προσπαθούν να τον ξορκίσουν.
Ο Baricco, σε αυτό το βιβλίο, εναλλάσει την πρωτοπρόσωπη μα την τριτοπρόσωπη αφήγηση και ενίοτε συμπεριλαμβάνει και σκέψεις δικές του - σκέψεις του συγγραφέα. Ανώνυμοι πρωταγωνιστές, που δίνουν τη δική τους εκδοχή της ζωής και των θέλω τους. Και μέσα σε όλα, η νεαρή νύφη, να πρέπει να προετοιμαστεί για να υποδεχτεί τον γιο - τον γιο που την επέλεξε και που όλοι αποδέχτηκαν την επιλογή του. Τα μυστικά όμως είναι πολλά, κι οι σκελετοί καλά κρυμμένοι. Πόσο προετοιμασμένος είναι κανείς απέναντι στα πάντα και στο τίποτα?
Ιδιαίτερο βιβλίο, χωρίς πλοκή και σαφή όρια και με ένα τέλος που ενδεχομένως να ήταν λυτρωτικό σε διαφορετική περίπτωση.

"Έχουμε την απίστευτη δύναμη με την οποία δίνουμε νόημα στα πράγματα, στους τόπους, στα πάντα: και όμως, δεν καταφέρνουμε να δούμε τίποτα καλά, όλα γίνονται αμέσως ουδέτερα, αντικείμενα που δανειστηκαμε, περαστικες ιδέες, αισθήματα εύθραυστα σαν το κρύσταλλο. Μέχρι και τα κορμιά, η λαχτάρα των σωμάτων: απρόβλεπτη."


3,5 αστέρια
Profile Image for iva°.
738 reviews110 followers
May 18, 2021
sasvim neočekivano ugodno iznenađenje. usprkos potpuno promašenoj naslovnici + naslovu koji kao da su ispali iz kioska osamdesetih, sam tekst je sjajan. misterija i intriga, međuljudski odnosi, nekoliko vrlo kultiviranih scena seksa, plejada neobičnih likova (bezimenih) čije povezanosti otkrivaš tijekom cijele knjige - samouvjereno i majstorski upakirano.
Profile Image for LW.
357 reviews93 followers
July 24, 2018
La Incredibile e Triste Storia della candida Sposa giovane e della sua Suocera snaturata...(per non parlar di certi pantaloncini :) )

Questo libro è arrivato sotto il mio ombrellone dalla biblioteca del mare
Non so bene perché l'ho scelto .
anzi lo so :) (è solo che mi imbarazza un poco dirlo ) Ok , ok , ve lo dico ...tanto oramai... :D
(ci diciamo tutto)
Io l'avevo solo preso dallo scaffale e subito la signora della biblioteca, una baricchiana di lungo corso, ha esclamato entusiasta
"Ah, bene, ottima scelta!" In quel momento è passato un ragazzo cubano con dei pantaloncini verdi e rossi, che stava andando ad allenarsi al campo di beach volley, proprio lì accanto...Mi è venuto da sorridere e devo aver annuito impercettibilmente, mentre osservavo quei pantaloncini anni 80( ma dove li avrà comprati ? )
... la signora l'ha preso per un assenso e mi sono ritrovata con il prestito bell'e registrato .
Mmm... E allora com'è?
Eh, forte in attacco ,in ricezione un po' meno, ma è per via dell'altezza ...
Aaah, La Sposa Giovane ?
Dico solo che ad un certo punto mi è venuta una gran voglia di scaraventare il libro nella buca che stavano scavando i bambini della vicina ....in quella casa tutti attentano all'innocenza della Sposa giovane
e prima la Figlia
e poi la Madre ,no dico ,la Futura Suocera in una scena insulsa di sesso con la ragazza che sposerà suo figlio !? Una roba raccapricciante
una stellina per un'unica perla in tante insulsaggini
Le parole di cui siamo capaci sono l'unica nudità totale , scandalosa, finale, di cui disponiamo
Profile Image for Dina.
646 reviews401 followers
September 15, 2017
De verdad q no entiendo la capacidad de Baricco para escribir verdaderas obras de arte y luego hacer esto... La historia es una locura, quiere ser realismo mágico pero obviamente no lo consigue ni de lejos, tb quiere ser algo erótico y de paso añadirle misterio y al final solo consigue un batiburrillo aburrido y en ocasiones sin sentido.
Muchos críticos alaban lo q hace con el narrador yo sencillamente he detestado la forma en q está contado.
Profile Image for Greta.
354 reviews48 followers
September 4, 2016
"Maybe I expected her to reopen the map of the Earth and show me where I was - I knew that, if she did, she would do it with a particular beauty in her gestures."

One can tell it's Baricco by merely flipping through the pages of this book. I loved the narrative, I loved the choice of words, I loved those short sentences that carry the great weight and make you hold your breath for a little while. The story is gripping and captivating, but it also contains a certain slowness; it's enthralling, mystical, very erotic, and everything is told with such grace.
While there were a few details or scenes that seemed unnecessary while reading, it all fitts so well in the end. I wouldn't cross out a single word.

"However we might strive to seek more elegant or artificial explanations, for all of us our origin was written in our bodies, in characters engraved with fire - whether it was the imprecision of a heart, the scandal of reckless beauty, or the brutal necessity of desire. Thus we live in the illusion that we are putting back in order what the humiliating or marvelous act of a body has thrown into disarray. In a final marvelous or humiliating act of the body, we die. All the rest is a useless dance, made memorable by wonderful dancers."

"I should have thrown away everything that the woman I loved so much had left behind, but how do you do it, it's like a shipwreck, a lot of things, of all kinds, remain floating on the surface, in these cases. You can't, really, clean up. And you have to hold on to something, when you can't swim anymore."

"We have an incredible force with which we give meaning to things, to places, to everything: and yet we can't secure anything, it all goes back to neutral right away - borrowed objects, fleeting ideas, feelings as fragile as crystal. Even bodies, the desire of bodies: unpredictable. We can bombard any piece of the world with all the intensity we're capable of and, an hour later, it's newly reborn. You can understand something, know it thoroughly, and it has already shifted, it knows nothing of you, it has its own mysterious life, which takes no account of what you've made of it. Those who love us betray us, and we betray those we love. We can't secure anything, believe me. When I was young, trying to explain to myself the mute sorrow that clung to me, I was convinced that the problem lay in my incapacity to find my path: but you see, in reality we walk a lot, with courage, intuition, passion, each of us on our own just path, without errors. But we leave no traces. I don't know why. Our footsteps leave no imprint. Maybe we are astute, swift, mean animals, but incapable of marking the earth. I don't know. But, believe me, we don't leave traces even in ourselves. Thus there is nothing that survives our intention, and what we construct is never built."
Profile Image for Marisol.
928 reviews85 followers
January 5, 2024
Un libro que se mueve entre una leyenda de las mil y una noche, y un cuento italiano.

Cierta familia tiene la costumbre de realizar toda una apología al ritual de levantarse cada mañana, entre un desayuno copioso y la alegría de estar vivos, esto les dura casi todo el día. Debido a que las muertes en esta familia siempre se han dado en la noche y mientras dormían, sin excepción.

A partir de ahí se desarrolla esta historia, donde todos los personajes tienen algo de enigmáticos, aunque en sí son una familia como cualquiera, hay un padre, una madre, una hija, un hijo, un tío y un mayordomo.

La esposa joven llaman a una recién llegada que dice ser la prometida del hijo, este hijo está ausente y la novela transcurre esperando su llegada.

Hay múltiples historias y tragedias que se van desgranando de la manera más sutil y delicada, se van conociendo los porque de cada personaje, de su raro actuar y proceder, hasta la misma esposa joven guarda un secreto donde la tragedia familiar la envuelve como un capullo del que puede salir algo.

Si ya has leído alguna novela de Alessandro Barico de seguro reconocerás su estilo, que se encuentra impregnado en cada una de estas páginas y si no, te servirá para saber si lo amas o lo odias, no hay más.

Pues Baricco tiene un estilo muy pronunciado, que se puede identificar fácilmente, historias que parecen cuentos, narraciones que tienen su propio ritmo, prosa que tiende a la poesía, personajes enigmáticos, amores contrariados, y la distancia física como un impedimento o imposibilidad constante.

En esta tesitura podemos ver que esta historia es linda, es interesante pero no llega a las alturas de su trabajo más acabado.
Profile Image for ☕Laura.
633 reviews174 followers
November 2, 2016
Ummmm. Hmm. I'm not sure what to say. Baricco is one of my absolute favorite authors, but I really didn't get this book at all. I really don't know what else to say. It was so strange, and I'm sure I'm just missing the whole point, but it didn't work for me.
Profile Image for Inga Grencberga.
Author 6 books582 followers
October 24, 2019
"... dienu secība viņiem bija vienaldzīga, jo viņi allaž tiecās izdzīvot tikai vienu vienīgu perfektu dienu, atkārtojot to bezgala daudz reižu; tāpēc laiks viņu uztverē bija parādība ar mainīgām aprisēm ..."

Bariko JAUNĀ LĪGAVA tiešā un pārnestā nozīmē ir pārņēmusi manu prātu un sajūtas. IZCILA! 🖤
Nelaiž vaļā, tur savā varā, koriģē domas un vārdus ... Un kad jūsu roka izdevēja ZvaigzneABC grāmatnīcā sniegsies pēc šī šedevra (+ ģeniāls tulkotājas darbs), paņemiet arī Bariko ZĪDU un MISTERU GVINU ... ļaujiet sev piedzīvot īstu lasītbaudu...

#jogrāmatasirjālasa
“Fakts ir tāds, ka daži grāmatas raksta, bet citi lasa, un dievs vien zina, kuram no tiem ir lielākas izredzes kaut ko saprast.” (c) Alessandro Baricco

#jogrāmatasirjāraksta
Tagad nu gan - līdz manas pašas grāmatas finišam un pēdējo punktu salikšanai - lasīšanas gavēnis.
Profile Image for Linda.
Author 3 books101 followers
July 5, 2021
Fakts ir tāds, ka daži grāmatas raksta, bet citi lasa, un dievs vien zina, kuram no tiem ir lielākas izredzes kaut ko saprast.

Kad ir sasniegts tas panākumu kalngals, kad autors var atļauties būt Autors?

Bariko tas ir "Jaunās Līgavas" mirklis*. Autors ir klātesošs visa teksta gaitā. Viņš neslēpjas, gluži pretēji - Bariko izklāj sarkano paklāju savai refleksijai par šī (un ne tikai) teksta tapšanu. Piemērā autors stāsta par to, kādēļ lēkā starp stāstītāju balsīm (gluži, bet ne gluži kā Kabrē savā episkajā Es atzīstos).

Piemēram, man būtu vajadzējis vecajam draugam atklāt, kā, rakstot par jauno Līgavu, man gadās vairāk vai mazāk strauji nomainīt vēstītāja balsi - un šādu maiņu iemesli man pašam pagaidām šķiet tīri tehniski vai varbūt viegli estētiski, taču šādi pārlēcieni nenoliedzami sarežģī dzīvi lasītājam, un par to vēl varētu neuztraukties, taču vienlaikus rodas arī kaitinošs iespaids, ka uzsvērti cenšos demonstrēt virtuozitāti, un sākumā es pat šo negribēto efektu mēģināju apkarot, tomēr drīz vien padevos acīmredzamajam faktam, ka vienkārši nespēju sajust šos teikumus citādi, kā vien slidinādams tos pa tekstu tieši šādi, it kā vienas skaidras un izteiktas vēstošās balss atbalsts būtu kas tāds, kam es vairs neticu, vai arī kas tāds, ko vairs neprotu novērtēt. Izlikšanās, kas man vairs neder, jo esmu zaudējis vajadzīgo nevainību. Beigu beigās es tad būtu spiests vecā drauga priekšā atzīties, ka, lai arī man pašam visos sīkumos šī būšana nav skaidra, tomēr varu pieļaut domu, ka pastāv tāda vai citāda atbilstība starp manu teikumu vēstošo balsu nevienmērīgo lēkāšanu un to, ka man pēdējos mēnešos nācies atklāt par sevi un citiem, proti, ka, iespējams, esmu ielūkojies tādā dzīvē, kur notikumiem nav virziena, un tātad tie nemaz nav stāsti, un tātad tos nemaz nav iespējams izstāstīt, un ka būtībā tie ir bezveidīgi noslēpumi, kuru uzdevums ir saspridzināt mums prātu, kā to skaidri parāda mans gadījums.

Jā, var likties samudžināti un, nezinot kontekstu, nesvarīgi. Tomēr it kā nelielajā grāmatā šādu tekstu ir daudz. Un tie visi, manuprāt, tur lieliski iedera. Kāds tad ir konteksts? Jaunā Līgava ir jauna sieviete, kas pirms vairākiem gadiem saderinājusies ar Dēlu, bet pēdējos trīs gadus pavadījusi citā kontinentā. Kad pienāk pilngadība, viņa ierodas pie Dēla, kurš nav mājās. Protams, ja ir Dēls, ir arī Māte (leģendāra un mistiska) un Tēvs (trausls un ar noslēpumu), ir pat Meita (pārliecināta un pacietīga) un Tēvocis (cilvēks noslēpums). Un uzticīgais kalpotājs Modesto. Ģimene ir diezgan ekstravaganta (nedaudz atgādina Gaidot Bodžanglu), ar stingri bohēmiskām tradīcijām un rituāliem, kuri, visticamākais, paliks pagātnē līdz ar šīs ģimenes aiziešanu. Līgava, gaidot Dēlu (kas ir tikpat abstrakts un brīžiem absurds process, kā gaidot Godo), atklāj sevi no jauniem skatpunktiem. Un pieskārienpunktiem. Grāmatā ir dažas burvīgas erotiskas ainas (nezinu, vai tās tādas paredzētas, vai tādas tās kļūst manā realitātē), daudzas burvīgas refleksijas ainas par teksta tapšanu, vairāki negaidīti sižeta pavērsieni (lai arī jāpiebilst, ka teksts ir tik neparasts, ka nav skaidrs, kas šeit būtu gaidāms pavērsiens) un pēdējais teikums, ko nesapratu, bet kas lika man skaļi smieties.

Ņemot vērā, ka mani ļoti uzrunā grāmatas, kurās autors atklāti runā par tās rakstīšanas procesu (piemēram HHhH, ļoti izbaudīju un iesaku literatūras gardēžiem. Kā arī ceru, ka man būs iespēja redzēt grāmatas iestudējumu Liepājas teātrī.


*Šim teikumam ir jāskan kā no nopientas kritiķes**, kas izlasījusi visu Bariko daiļradi. Arī oriģinālvalodā.
** Tā neesmu es, šis mans otrais Bariko piedzīvojums
Profile Image for هاميس محمود.
321 reviews83 followers
April 23, 2025
شعور في منتهى اللطافة والجمال عندما حصلت على الرواية كهدية من صديق عزيز بمناسبة عيد ميلادي، لأنه باريكو من كُتابي المفضلين جدا، فعلا لما بحصل على عمل للكاتب لم اقرأه بعد، فرحتي بتبقى كبيرة، فما أجملها من هدية وما ألطفه من اختيار.

وأنا بقرأ لباريكو بعيش حالة مختلفة عمري ما شعرت بيها غير مع رواياته. أفكاره وأسلوبه كأنها قادمة من عالم تاني، غير مألوف وعبثي أحيانا ولكن على الرغم من ذلك بنتقابل أنا وهو في الأحاسيس والتعبيرات وبحس أنها معبرة عني رغم التباعد الشديد في عالمي وعالمه.

عندما حان الموعد، ذهبت العروس لتفكر أهل حبيبها بالموعد من أجل زواجها بابنهم، ووجدت نفسها في منزل كانت معتقد أنه عادي، ولكن ما لبثت أن تكتشف العروس مفاجأت كتير مع هذه العائلة فمثلا لا يوجد عندهم وجبة اسمها الغذاء، يخافون الليل ...

حكاية غريبة حاسة أنها عبثية، اعتقادي الشخصي أنها الغرض منها أن تتقاطع مع حياة الكاتب الذي كان صوته كراوي عليم واضح جدا، بيتشابك مع أحداث الرواية لدرجة أحترت عن ماذا يحكي الآن؟ حكايته هو أم عن العروس الشابة! وهذا أعجبني كثيرا وكان ماهر فيه جدا، ممكن لم أحب القصة نفسها كثيرا، قصة العروس الشابة لكن حبيت ما وصله لي الراوي العليم وشعرت به.

يقول باريكو في مقطع من الرواية:" ما علاقة حكاية عائلة تتناول الإفطار حتى الثالثة ظهرا أو بعم ينام طوال الوقت، بالتدهور المفاجئ الذي يوشك أن يمحوني من الوجود. لا شئ على الإطلاق." ♥️
Profile Image for Olethros.
2,724 reviews534 followers
June 27, 2018
-Se queda en un territorio neutro por mezclar demasiadas cosas.-

Género. Novela.

Lo que nos cuenta. En el libro La Esposa joven (publicación original: La Sposa giovane, 2015) somos testigos de la llegada de la Esposa joven, hija de un ganadero argentino, a la casa del Hijo, de una familia italiana dedicada al negocio textil, para un matrimonio concertado. Pero cuando la prometida llega a Italia su futuro marido está de viaje fuera del país, en Inglaterra, mientras en la casa están el Padre, la Madre, la Hija y el Tío, además del personal de servicio y visitantes de la localidad, y empezará a relacionarse con ellos, presos de unas dinámicas bastante particulares, mientras espera a que el Hijo vuelva.

¿Quiere saber más de este libro, sin spoilers? Visite:

http://librosdeolethros.blogspot.com/...
Profile Image for Andris Ogriņš.
Author 10 books9 followers
November 17, 2019
Lieliska, tomēr uz beigām mazliet nesakārtota grāmata. Tik un tā 5 zvaigznes. Nu, mīlu es viņu, tur neko nevar darīt.
Profile Image for Sarmīte.
623 reviews18 followers
September 27, 2020
Liktu pat 12 zvaigznes! Nezinu - iespējams, kaut kas tieši sasaucas ar manām šībrīža pārdomām vai sajūtām, bet grāmata likās man rakstīta. Lieliski.
Profile Image for Sisī.
215 reviews37 followers
March 29, 2021
Par šo grāmatu es varētu teikt tā - es nezinu, kas tas bija un kā tam trakajam itālim kaut kas tāds ir ienācis prātā, bet tas bija pilnīgs Wow. Ļoti noslēpumaini, ļoti teiksmaini, jutekliski, asprātīgi, absurdi un neparasti.

Jaunā Līgava" mani tiešām pārsteidza - gan formas, gan sižeta ziņā. Tā nepakļaujas nekādiem loģikas un strukturētas formas likumiem, tāpēc nebūs radīta katram. Citam tās būs zobusāpes, citam patīkams pārsteigums. Man otrais variants, noteikti neparastākā šogad izlasītā grāmata.
Profile Image for Tonkica.
733 reviews147 followers
March 12, 2022
2.5

Odmah u startu sam pogriješila. Uvidjevši da knjiga ima svega 166 stranica, dala sam si zaključiti da će mi 4 dana biti sasvim dovoljna, ako ne i previše, da ju dovršim na vrijeme. Čitateljski klub je „zoomao“ i ja sam na kraju knjigu pročitala sat vremena prije sastanka. Bitno je da sam stigla.

Više o utiscima pročitajte klikom na link: https://knjige-u-svom-filmu.webador.c...
Profile Image for Edita.
1,586 reviews590 followers
November 9, 2017
So, in order not to die, she took refuge where she knew she would find the last line of resistance to disaster. She forced herself to think about the Son. But think is a reductive word to define an operation that she knew was quite complex. Three years of silence and separation were not easy to retrace. So much distance had accumulated that the Son had long since stopped being, for the young Bride, an easily accessible thought, or memory, or sentiment. He had become a place. An enclave, buried in the landscape of her feelings, which she couldn’t always find again. Often she set off to reach it, but got lost on the way. It would have been simpler for her if she could have had available some physical desire to hold onto, in order to scale the walls of oblivion. But desire for the Son—his mouth, his hands, his skin—was something it wasn’t simple to return to. She could distinctly summon to memory particular instants in which she had desired him even in a devastating way, but now, staring at them, it seemed to her that she was staring at a room in which, in place of colors, little pieces of paper were stuck to the walls with the names of the hues written on them: indigo, Venetian red, sand yellow. Turquoise. It wasn’t pleasant to admit, but it was so.[…] For that reason, following the traces of physical desire wasn’t often, for the young Bride, the best system for finding the road that led to the hiding place of her love. Occasionally, she preferred to dig out of her memory the beauty of certain phrases, or certain gestures—a beauty of which the Son was a master. She found this beauty intact, then, in memory. And for a moment this seemed to restore to her the spell of the Son and bring her back to the exact point at which her journey aimed. But it was an illusion more than anything. She found herself contemplating marvelous objects that still lay in the cabinets of distance, impossible to touch, inaccessible to the heart. So the agonizing sense of ultimate loss was mixed with the pleasure of admiration, and the Son grew even more distant, almost unapproachable, now. In order not to truly lose him, the young Bride had had to learn that in reality no quality of the Son—or detail, or marvel—was now sufficient to enable her to cross the abyss of distance, because no man, however loved, is enough by himself to defeat the destructive power of absence. What the young Bride understood was that only by thinking of the two of them, together, was she able to sink into herself to where the permanence of her love dwelt, intact. She went back then to certain states of mind, certain ways of perceiving, which she still remembered very well. She thought of the two of them, together, and could feel a certain heat, or the tone of certain nuances, even the quality of a certain silence. A particular light. Then it was given to her to find what she sought, in the definite sensation that a place existed to which the world was not admitted, and which coincided with the perimeter marked by their two bodies, kindled by their being together, and made unassailable by their anomaly. If she could reach that sensation, everything became harmless again. Since the disaster of every life around her, and even of her own, was no longer a danger to her happiness but, if anything, the counterpart that made still more necessary and invincible the refuge that she and the Son had created, loving each other. They were the demonstration of a theorem that refuted the world, and when she could return to that conviction, all fear abandoned her and a new, sweet confidence took possession of her. There was nothing more wonderful in the world.
Profile Image for Pieter Decuyper.
137 reviews2 followers
March 5, 2019
Opnieuw een geslaagde kennismaking met de wondere wereld van Baricco. Dit boek zou wat minder zijn dan pakweg 'Zijde' of 'Mr. Gwyn', maar voor mij kan deze roman zich perfect meten met voorgaande romans.

Het verhaal gaat over de Familie. De Moeder heeft een intrigerende reputatie op het gebied van mannen, de Vader heeft zijn hele leven afgestemd op zijn 'hart van glas’, de Dochter loopt mank en de Oom lijkt aan een slaapziekte te lijden. De enige die alle familiegeheimen kent is Modesto, al 59 jaar de bediende van de familie. Modesto doet zijn naam eer aan. Hij is praktisch onzichtbaar en is in staat de urgentie van zaken te duiden door middel van kuchjes. Behoedzaam gidst hij de Jonge Bruid door de familie. Tijdens het wachten op haar bruidegom (de Zoon), ontdekt de Jonge Bruid niet alleen alle familiegeheimen, maar ook haar eigen seksualiteit en ontpopt ze zich tot meester van de soms absurde situaties die zich afspelen in de prachtige woning van de Familie.

Baricco speelt opnieuw zijn mooie schrijfstijl uit, met opvallend veel sensuele passages, die nooit plat overkomen...

‘De liefde bedrijven is een eindeloze zoektocht naar een houding waarin je in elkaar kunt opgaan, een houding die niet bestaat, maar het zoeken ernaar bestaat wel, en dat is een kunst.’

Baricco speelt ook met het vertelperspectief. Elk hoofdpersonage - en ook de auteur zelf - lijkt af en toe aan het woord, al weet je dat als lezer niet altijd zeker:

'Ik had mijn oude vriend bijvoorbeeld moeten vertellen hoe ik, terwijl ik over de Jonge Bruid schrijf, soms min of meer plotseling van vertelstem verander, om redenen die me op dat moment geraffineerd technisch voorkomen, en op z’n hoogst matig esthetisch, met het voor de hand liggende resultaat dat ik het leven compliceer voor de lezer.’

Op het einde van de roman strooit Baricco met prachtige, filosofische passages:

'We hebben een ongelooflijke kracht waarmee we betekenis toekennen aan de dingen, aan plekken, aan alles: maar we kunnen het gewoon niet vastleggen, alles wordt meteen weer neutraal, geleende voorwerpen, vluchtige ideeën gevoelens zo breekbaar als kristal. Zelfs lichamen, de begeerte van lichamen: onvoorspelbaar. We kunnen met alle intensiteit die we in ons hebben op een bepaald stukje wereld mikken, maar een uur later is dat weer als pasgeboren. Je kunt iets begrijpen, het tot in detail kennen , maar zelf heeft het zich alweer omgedraaid, het weet niets van jou af, het heeft een eigen raadselachtig leven dat geen rekening houdt met hoe jij haar ziet. Degenen die van ons houden verraden ons, en wij verraden degenen van wie we houden. We kunnen niets vastleggen, geloof me.'

Opnieuw een aanrader. Ik denk dat ik ook de andere romans van Baricco ga verslinden.

'Hij verliet de kamer, en dit boek, zonder een woord te zeggen.'
Profile Image for Dibz.
150 reviews54 followers
Read
July 25, 2021
DNF at 40%

I usually buy books that have been recommended by reviewers or that have been on my radar and I know a little bit about. Once bookshops reopened in England, I thought I'd do something I've never done before and buy a book I hadn't heard of. I was taken in by the stunning cover and the promise of a 'magical and erotically charged novel'.

There's definitely a strange, eery, dream like quality to the 'Young Bride'. It's the tale of a very wealthy, eccentric family - The Father, The Mother, The Sister, The Uncle, The Son and their loyal housekeeper Modesto - this is a family that is scared of the night in case they die and celebrate waking up everyday with a lavish, prolonged breakfast. One day The Young Bride turns up to their breakfast. It was decided three years ago that she would marry The Son who is currently away on business in England. The Young Bride waits for the return of the Son at the family's home and learns about the strange, beautiful family she will be marrying into.

I struggled with this book. It's quite a short book but it demands a close reading if you want to follow what is going on. Written in a stream of consciousness style it jumps from character to character and event to event with little explanation or reason - what results is a half formed, confusing narrative ( hardly a narrative as this is a largely plotless book). Baricco adds to this confusion by messing around with the narrative voice, it's not apparent who is narrating the story and the pronouns are exchanged constantly ( I becomes she ) so we're not sure which character/s are narrating the story, if in fact it is any of them. The part where I gave up on this book was when this aside from the narrator/writer appeared:

' ...writing about the Young Bride, I more or less abruptly change the narrative voice, for reasons that at the moment seem to me exquisitely technical, or at most blandly aesthetic, with the obvious result of complicating the life of the reader; that it itself is negligible, yet it has an irritating effect of virtuosity that at first I even tried to fight, before surrendering to the evidence that I simply couldn't hear the sentences unless they slipped out that way...' and it goes on like that.

Honestly, the complications added to the narrative for the writers' pleasure isn't worth muddling through because I don't think I will get anything at all out off this book. It's completely possible that this book is just too smart and too experimental in style for me.

That all being said it is apparent that Baricco is an able writer and I think I'll be giving Silk a go.

Profile Image for Danilo De rossi.
176 reviews9 followers
July 17, 2016
"Il fatto è che alcuni scrivono libri, altri li leggono: sa dio chi è nella posizione per capirci qualcosa."

Ecco, appunto. Per dire, io di questo libro salvo poco o niente, proprio perché è pensato diversamente da come io concepisco un romanzo. Che Baricco sappia scrivere non è cosa nuova, ma non riesco a capire né a giustificare questa sua esigenza di ricordarlo costantemente al lettore, con il risultato di una scrittura superficialmente bella, ma in sostanza vuota e affettata. Riconosco che scrivere possa essere anche finzione, o che fondamentalmente lo sia, ma a patto che risulti credibile. Ecco, io non riesco a dare credibilità a Baricco quando tenta di spiegare come la sua scrittura nasca altrove e come l'atto stesso di scrivere sia un portare in superficie quanto risiede nel profondo più intimo della sua coscienza. Questo lo ritrovo in maniera credibile nella prosa della Mazzantini, ma in quella di Baricco, mi dispiace, no. Per quanto lui si ostini a dimostrare quanto in realtà i libri li viva, a me non solo questo non arriva, ma arriva l'esatto contrario. Non mette il contenuto a servizio della forma, ma la forma al servizio de contenuto, come se questa fosse prioritaria rispetto all'altro; come se da sola bastasse a colmare o a riempire i vuoti dell'altro. E per lui probabilmente sarà anche così, visto che nel testo afferma a chiare lettere di volere dominare la materia modellandola a suo piacimento, quasi a dimostrare a se stesso la sua capacità di abile "scultore della parola". Ma non vedo la naturalezza, la sincerità, la trasparenza che dovrebbero esserci. Questo è il motivo per cui questo romanzo a me non è piaciuto per niente: perché, in questo esercizio di stile, il contenuto non trova spazio. Probabilmente anche perché non c'è. O ce n'è talmente poco che in qualche maniera questa mancanza deve essere colmata. Qualche passaggio interessante c'è, ma da solo non basta a salvare un romanzo che, a dispetto della sua brevità, risulta estremamente pesante, noioso e sconclusionato con continui passaggi dalla prima alla terza persona. I personaggi risultano di carta velina, privi di consistenza e fondamentalmente di identità. Nessuno, a parte il servitore, viene chiamato per nome, ma solo in base al ruolo che rivestono all'interno della famiglia, quasi a volersi proporre o imporre come degli archetipi, che tuttavia finiscono col risultare ancora meno credibili della scrittura stessa dell'autore. Per il mio gusto di lettore è un libro davvero mal riuscito, questo. Sotto ogni punto di vista, mi dispiace.
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