What do you think?
Rate this book
Serenissima
Erica Jong reads her dazzling novel in a way that will give you wings to travel through time. She will lure you to the Venice of today and the Venice in its illustrious past.
Hollywood actress Jessica Pruitt, a judge at the Venice Film Festival, senses something mysterious in the air. A captive of Venice wracked with fever and exhaustion, the past and present intermingle and Jessica slips into 16th century Venice to play the greatest role of her life and to experience the sensual love affair she has always been seeking.
Hollywood actress Jessica Pruitt, a judge at the Venice Film Festival, senses something mysterious in the air. A captive of Venice wracked with fever and exhaustion, the past and present intermingle and Jessica slips into 16th century Venice to play the greatest role of her life and to experience the sensual love affair she has always been seeking.
384 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1987
56 people are currently reading
306 people want to read
About the author
Erica Jong
119 books875 followersErica Jong—novelist, poet, and essayist—has consistently used her craft to help provide women with a powerful and rational voice in forging a feminist consciousness. She has published 21 books, including eight novels, six volumes of poetry, six books of non-fiction and numerous articles in magazines and newspapers such as the New York Times, the Sunday Times of London, Elle, Vogue, and the New York Times Book Review.
In her groundbreaking first novel, Fear of Flying (which has sold twenty-six million copies in more than forty languages), she introduced Isadora Wing, who also plays a central part in three subsequent novels—How to Save Your Own Life, Parachutes and Kisses, and Any Woman's Blues. In her three historical novels—Fanny, Shylock's Daughter, and Sappho's Leap—she demonstrates her mastery of eighteenth-century British literature, the verses of Shakespeare, and ancient Greek lyric, respectively. A memoir of her life as a writer, Seducing the Demon: Writing for My Life, came out in March 2006. It was a national bestseller in the US and many other countries. Erica’s latest book, Sugar in My Bowl, is an anthology of women writing about sex, has been recently released in paperback.
Erica Jong was honored with the United Nations Award for Excellence in Literature. She has also received Poetry magazine's Bess Hokin Prize, also won by W.S. Merwin and Sylvia Plath. In France, she received the Deauville Award for Literary Excellence and in Italy, she received the Sigmund Freud Award for Literature. The City University of New York awarded Ms. Jong an honorary PhD at the College of Staten Island.
Her works have appeared all over the world and are as popular in Eastern Europe, Japan, China, and other Asian countries as they have been in the United States and Western Europe. She has lectured, taught and read her work all over the world.
A graduate of Barnard College and Columbia University's Graduate Faculties where she received her M.A. in 18th Century English Literature, Erica Jong also attended Columbia's graduate writing program where she studied poetry with Stanley Kunitz and Mark Strand. In 2007, continuing her long-standing relationship with the university, a large collection of Erica’s archival material was acquired by Columbia University’s Rare Book & Manuscript Library, where it will be available to graduate and undergraduate students. Ms. Jong plans to teach master classes at Columbia and also advise the Rare Book Library on the acquisition of other women writers’ archives.
Calling herself “a defrocked academic,” Ms. Jong has partly returned to her roots as a scholar. She has taught at Ben Gurion University in Israel, Bennington College in the US, Breadloaf Writers’ Conference in Vermont and many other distinguished writing programs and universities. She loves to teach and lecture, though her skill in these areas has sometimes crowded her writing projects. “As long as I am communicating the gift of literature, I’m happy,” Jong says. A poet at heart, Ms. Jong believes that words can save the world.
In her groundbreaking first novel, Fear of Flying (which has sold twenty-six million copies in more than forty languages), she introduced Isadora Wing, who also plays a central part in three subsequent novels—How to Save Your Own Life, Parachutes and Kisses, and Any Woman's Blues. In her three historical novels—Fanny, Shylock's Daughter, and Sappho's Leap—she demonstrates her mastery of eighteenth-century British literature, the verses of Shakespeare, and ancient Greek lyric, respectively. A memoir of her life as a writer, Seducing the Demon: Writing for My Life, came out in March 2006. It was a national bestseller in the US and many other countries. Erica’s latest book, Sugar in My Bowl, is an anthology of women writing about sex, has been recently released in paperback.
Erica Jong was honored with the United Nations Award for Excellence in Literature. She has also received Poetry magazine's Bess Hokin Prize, also won by W.S. Merwin and Sylvia Plath. In France, she received the Deauville Award for Literary Excellence and in Italy, she received the Sigmund Freud Award for Literature. The City University of New York awarded Ms. Jong an honorary PhD at the College of Staten Island.
Her works have appeared all over the world and are as popular in Eastern Europe, Japan, China, and other Asian countries as they have been in the United States and Western Europe. She has lectured, taught and read her work all over the world.
A graduate of Barnard College and Columbia University's Graduate Faculties where she received her M.A. in 18th Century English Literature, Erica Jong also attended Columbia's graduate writing program where she studied poetry with Stanley Kunitz and Mark Strand. In 2007, continuing her long-standing relationship with the university, a large collection of Erica’s archival material was acquired by Columbia University’s Rare Book & Manuscript Library, where it will be available to graduate and undergraduate students. Ms. Jong plans to teach master classes at Columbia and also advise the Rare Book Library on the acquisition of other women writers’ archives.
Calling herself “a defrocked academic,” Ms. Jong has partly returned to her roots as a scholar. She has taught at Ben Gurion University in Israel, Bennington College in the US, Breadloaf Writers’ Conference in Vermont and many other distinguished writing programs and universities. She loves to teach and lecture, though her skill in these areas has sometimes crowded her writing projects. “As long as I am communicating the gift of literature, I’m happy,” Jong says. A poet at heart, Ms. Jong believes that words can save the world.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 51 reviews
June 6, 2024
Wow, how my taste has changed over the years. I read this back in the late ‘80s, loved it, retaining fond memories of my total enjoyment. Now it just feels like someone I used to know. But it’s not bad. I mean, it’s set in Venice, Italy, so how bad could it be? There are some gorgeous descriptions of that fabulous city, which is unique in the world and undeniably enchanting.
But the prose does get a bit purple sometimes, especially in the 16th century section, and I am a prose snob. Still, overall, it’s a good light entertainment with plenty of drama in two different storylines. There’s the glamour of a 20th century film festival in Venice, the romance of danger and forbidden love in 16th century Venice, a likeable heroine in actress Jessica Pruitt, magic, time travel, a young pre-fame William Shakespeare, and a decent amount of sex (it is Erica Jong, after all.) I still love the ending.
But thirty-five years and at least a thousand books later, it just didn’t land in the same place for me, so I’m gently knocking the rating down from 5 stars. But I’ll keep it at a solid 3 stars -- for a fun read and old times’ sake.
But the prose does get a bit purple sometimes, especially in the 16th century section, and I am a prose snob. Still, overall, it’s a good light entertainment with plenty of drama in two different storylines. There’s the glamour of a 20th century film festival in Venice, the romance of danger and forbidden love in 16th century Venice, a likeable heroine in actress Jessica Pruitt, magic, time travel, a young pre-fame William Shakespeare, and a decent amount of sex (it is Erica Jong, after all.) I still love the ending.
But thirty-five years and at least a thousand books later, it just didn’t land in the same place for me, so I’m gently knocking the rating down from 5 stars. But I’ll keep it at a solid 3 stars -- for a fun read and old times’ sake.
June 9, 2023
1 ⭐️
Some books just shouldn’t have been written, this is one of them 😭
I had to force myself to press on because it became excruciatingly painful. I was hoping it would eventually get better but it never did. So boring, badly written, non-immersive, and overly descriptive (which added nothing to the story).
Also the constant language changes gave me a headache.
Some books just shouldn’t have been written, this is one of them 😭
I had to force myself to press on because it became excruciatingly painful. I was hoping it would eventually get better but it never did. So boring, badly written, non-immersive, and overly descriptive (which added nothing to the story).
Also the constant language changes gave me a headache.
February 10, 2017
Interestingly, when I took this out of the library, there was a piece of paper taped on the inside jacket titled “readers comments.” Here’s what anonymous guest critics had to say:
“Great fun!”
“Enjoyed every minute”
“Unfortunately, rather boring”
“Waste of time. Read ¼ and returned book.”
“Extravagant and too fevered, but wonderful, too.”
Well, I wasn’t too fazed by the mixed reviews because I know Jong is not for everybody. But she’s always been high on my list of favorites and the story sounded interesting, so I took it out.
Holy crap, what a disappointment. I mean, it wasn’t pathologically boring, but it wasn’t the Jong I know and love. Usually I can’t put her work down. I had to press to keep going with this one. I think she got a little over her head. She’s so earthy in her writing, that once she delved into the Elizabethan speech of the 16th century, it sounded ridiculous and cliché.
As Simon says, it's a no from me. My two favorite Jong books remain Any Woman's Blues: A Novel of Obsession and Parachutes & Kisses.
“Great fun!”
“Enjoyed every minute”
“Unfortunately, rather boring”
“Waste of time. Read ¼ and returned book.”
“Extravagant and too fevered, but wonderful, too.”
Well, I wasn’t too fazed by the mixed reviews because I know Jong is not for everybody. But she’s always been high on my list of favorites and the story sounded interesting, so I took it out.
Holy crap, what a disappointment. I mean, it wasn’t pathologically boring, but it wasn’t the Jong I know and love. Usually I can’t put her work down. I had to press to keep going with this one. I think she got a little over her head. She’s so earthy in her writing, that once she delved into the Elizabethan speech of the 16th century, it sounded ridiculous and cliché.
As Simon says, it's a no from me. My two favorite Jong books remain Any Woman's Blues: A Novel of Obsession and Parachutes & Kisses.
July 31, 2021
Så glad jag blev när jag hittade denna bok av Erica Jonge på en loppis, ”Rädd att flyga” är en favoritbok!! Började läsa och tio sidor in tyckte jag att handlingen hade någonting; en amerikansk skådespelerska åker till Venedig för att sitta i juryn för filmfestivalen och därefter spela in en film inspirerad av Shakespeare i samma stad. Döm av min förvåning när boken halvvägs in byter karaktär till en dålig historia i Outlanderstil (ni som sett serien vet). VA??? Jag som tyckte boken började så bra. Venedigkär och Erica Jong-fan, det kunde ju inte bli bättre? Men slutligen blev den här boken den sämsta jag läst på LÄNGE. Drömhistorien (ja hon drömmer och färdas i tiden) är inte ens rolig eller intressant. Visserligen kan Jong sin sak - en googling säger att hon är litteraturvetare med specialområde Shakespeare och Shakespeares tid - men snälla rara det är tramsigare än en dålig romantisk chic-litbok. Sådan besvikelse!!!!! Så om ni inte älskar Venedig och Outlander - plocka inte upp denna på en loppis.
November 8, 2022
I cannot let myself continue to ignore writing the review to this book – whoa!
This was indeed one of the best books I have ever read. Erica Jong made her writing filled with a variety of unexpectedly-deep-descriptions, cloudy dreams and heavily conflicting confrontations. Moreover, Shakespeare's works' and plays' are featured through some of the chapters and it made the story look somehow poetical. It was just perfect.
If I had to select one single flaw, that could be what almost everyone that has read this book remarks: the extension of the philosophical discussions that Jong introduces with her narrative – it sometimes felt a little tiring, but I have always admired the whole composition.
What I have enjoyed distinctly the most has to be the two boy bisexual dreamy fantasy that occurs close to the middle part of the book – Jesus Christ! I know I will remember that chapter for the rest of my live. It was truly penetrating.
Overall, this book was a great pleasure to read and although I might've changed the way the story turns at the end, this book has made its spot on my heart.
Definitely 4.5 out of 5🌟s.
🌷🇮🇹☁️🛶🌷🇮🇹☁️🛶🌷🇮🇹☁️🛶🌷🇮🇹☁️🛶🌷
This was indeed one of the best books I have ever read. Erica Jong made her writing filled with a variety of unexpectedly-deep-descriptions, cloudy dreams and heavily conflicting confrontations. Moreover, Shakespeare's works' and plays' are featured through some of the chapters and it made the story look somehow poetical. It was just perfect.
If I had to select one single flaw, that could be what almost everyone that has read this book remarks: the extension of the philosophical discussions that Jong introduces with her narrative – it sometimes felt a little tiring, but I have always admired the whole composition.
What I have enjoyed distinctly the most has to be the two boy bisexual dreamy fantasy that occurs close to the middle part of the book – Jesus Christ! I know I will remember that chapter for the rest of my live. It was truly penetrating.
Overall, this book was a great pleasure to read and although I might've changed the way the story turns at the end, this book has made its spot on my heart.
Definitely 4.5 out of 5🌟s.
🌷🇮🇹☁️🛶🌷🇮🇹☁️🛶🌷🇮🇹☁️🛶🌷🇮🇹☁️🛶🌷
April 12, 2019
Ugh.... When I was 19, I read Erica Jong's famous book the Fear of Flying. An incurable bookworm, I read widely back then but nothing could have prepared me to how icky some writing can be. This was a book, I found lying out on a table in a hostel in Vienna, where I was staying a few days, en route home from India. Totally out of money, I would have read anything (these were the days before the Internet, when people did read books a lot). Anyway, I was nearly traumatized by the purple prose. I made a pledge to never read anything by this writer again.
Fast forward thirty years... here we go again. I couldn’t resist both because of the time travel theme and more, because I’m currently reading the most fascinating book by Shakespeare expert at UC Santa Cruz about the Italian plays on the theme of embarrassment. That book is highly recommended.
This book was not as awful as the other one. First person novels are always tough because the books somehow live and die by that first person character and in this case the first person protagonist is tediously uninteresting. Is anyone really sympathetic to heiresses who struggle emotionally? And sadly while the heiress is described in painfully naturalistic details, everybody else is a cardboard cut out caricature. It was a different age, of course-- this book was written in the late 80s but still the Italians are so “Italian" and wealthy widows are off getting plastic surgery and drinking champagne with their young lovers - it goes on and on like this.
I quite liked her descriptions of Venice... but maybe that is because I don't know Venice. As far as her descriptions of Los Angeles, they were completely unrecognizable to me, even though I was born and raised there. She calls it La La Land and I suppose that’s a real term but I don’t think I’ve ever heard it used by somebody who lives there. Like calling is Cali. I never hear that term by anyone here. Anyway, her descriptions of plastic women with implants and the beaches dotted with William Morris agents was bizarre. I was in LA during the 80s and feel I should recognize something. But I did not.
Classic sentence, “unbeknownst to me, he had hired a detective to document my sexual life for the past two years. Not that it was lewd by Lala land standards: three leading man, one Texas oil billionaire, one exercise instructor in his 20s...."
Book is made up exclusively as sentences like this.
I have to hand it to the author I did love her descriptions of the Jewish ghetto and the history of the synagogues and she was great on Shakespeare. She’s definitely of the school who believed there was a man from Stratford who was Williams Shakespeare. Note to self, do not read anything by Erica Jong again. Life is too short. (I listened on Audible and narrator even seemed to be cringing).
Fast forward thirty years... here we go again. I couldn’t resist both because of the time travel theme and more, because I’m currently reading the most fascinating book by Shakespeare expert at UC Santa Cruz about the Italian plays on the theme of embarrassment. That book is highly recommended.
This book was not as awful as the other one. First person novels are always tough because the books somehow live and die by that first person character and in this case the first person protagonist is tediously uninteresting. Is anyone really sympathetic to heiresses who struggle emotionally? And sadly while the heiress is described in painfully naturalistic details, everybody else is a cardboard cut out caricature. It was a different age, of course-- this book was written in the late 80s but still the Italians are so “Italian" and wealthy widows are off getting plastic surgery and drinking champagne with their young lovers - it goes on and on like this.
I quite liked her descriptions of Venice... but maybe that is because I don't know Venice. As far as her descriptions of Los Angeles, they were completely unrecognizable to me, even though I was born and raised there. She calls it La La Land and I suppose that’s a real term but I don’t think I’ve ever heard it used by somebody who lives there. Like calling is Cali. I never hear that term by anyone here. Anyway, her descriptions of plastic women with implants and the beaches dotted with William Morris agents was bizarre. I was in LA during the 80s and feel I should recognize something. But I did not.
Classic sentence, “unbeknownst to me, he had hired a detective to document my sexual life for the past two years. Not that it was lewd by Lala land standards: three leading man, one Texas oil billionaire, one exercise instructor in his 20s...."
Book is made up exclusively as sentences like this.
I have to hand it to the author I did love her descriptions of the Jewish ghetto and the history of the synagogues and she was great on Shakespeare. She’s definitely of the school who believed there was a man from Stratford who was Williams Shakespeare. Note to self, do not read anything by Erica Jong again. Life is too short. (I listened on Audible and narrator even seemed to be cringing).
January 7, 2020
What the heck did I just read? !
Found paperback in used bookstore. Maybe this book could qualify as some 1980s "Mom" lit? It was not unlike "chick" lit, but a big theme was about how the main character really wanted to be a good mother, and she obsessed about a baby for half the book.
The other half of the book she obsesses about Shakespeare, and transports back in time because a "witch" gives her a magic ring. Protagonist finds herself living in Jewish ghetto in Venice; she meets and falls in love with a young Shakespeare, who is visiting the city with a rich, young "patron," who wants to behave as badly as possible with as many people as possible.
So, yes, readers definitely see some erotica, but some troubling violence as well. (Erica Jong was probably thinking to herself while writing: "You can't spell 'erotica' without 'Erica'!" Get it? E-R-o-t-I-C-A. Yay!)
The weird vehicle that made all this happen, for the protagonist, is that she is a middle-aged starlet, successfully telling the world that she is 35 while she perhaps is 47. She is attending the Venice film festival, she wears glittery 1980s outfits, she gets grabbed and fondled by various men, and she catches two bad illnesses that are like the flu, or plague, or both! The illnesses cause fever, hallucination, and then her time transportation.
It is WEIRD.
Found paperback in used bookstore. Maybe this book could qualify as some 1980s "Mom" lit? It was not unlike "chick" lit, but a big theme was about how the main character really wanted to be a good mother, and she obsessed about a baby for half the book.
The other half of the book she obsesses about Shakespeare, and transports back in time because a "witch" gives her a magic ring. Protagonist finds herself living in Jewish ghetto in Venice; she meets and falls in love with a young Shakespeare, who is visiting the city with a rich, young "patron," who wants to behave as badly as possible with as many people as possible.
So, yes, readers definitely see some erotica, but some troubling violence as well. (Erica Jong was probably thinking to herself while writing: "You can't spell 'erotica' without 'Erica'!" Get it? E-R-o-t-I-C-A. Yay!)
The weird vehicle that made all this happen, for the protagonist, is that she is a middle-aged starlet, successfully telling the world that she is 35 while she perhaps is 47. She is attending the Venice film festival, she wears glittery 1980s outfits, she gets grabbed and fondled by various men, and she catches two bad illnesses that are like the flu, or plague, or both! The illnesses cause fever, hallucination, and then her time transportation.
It is WEIRD.
April 12, 2023
adored the writing style, but the story itself lost me in the last third
September 13, 2022
This book is split into two parts with incredibly blurred boundaries. These two sections are divided by hundreds of years but told by the same narrator, accompanied by her strong and whimsical voice. There is a great reverence placed upon music, poetry, love, and the arts at large. A special emphasis is given to Shakespeare from the beginning, and this fixation escalates over the course of the novel. Jong breathes life into the work of Shakespeare in a unique and remarkable manner. The writing is simply gorgeous, intense imagery and longing bleeds off the pages. Excellent read.
Quotes:
"Venice is ever the fragile labyrinth at the edge of the sea and it reminds us how brief and perilous the journeys of out lives are"(1)
"I will never be in love again-unless it is with someone I invent, or someone centuries dead"(96)
"Until then I shall just lie here slipping in and out of time, waiting to see which century will claim me, whether I love a dead man or a living, whether I myself am dead or alive, mad or sane"(90)
"I am a poet. Poets know everything"(71)
"Romanticism and antiromanticism, flip sides of the same coin"(31)
"He had stirred me to the bottom of my being and then fled"(8)
Quotes:
"Venice is ever the fragile labyrinth at the edge of the sea and it reminds us how brief and perilous the journeys of out lives are"(1)
"I will never be in love again-unless it is with someone I invent, or someone centuries dead"(96)
"Until then I shall just lie here slipping in and out of time, waiting to see which century will claim me, whether I love a dead man or a living, whether I myself am dead or alive, mad or sane"(90)
"I am a poet. Poets know everything"(71)
"Romanticism and antiromanticism, flip sides of the same coin"(31)
"He had stirred me to the bottom of my being and then fled"(8)
February 12, 2015
There's a common misconception that the reason to read an Erica Jong book is for its pornographic qualities. "I just skimmed through looking for the dirty parts, and I was disappointed," as a friend once dismissed this novel. Serenissima in fact is a free-wheeling now-becomes-then fantasy involving a Shakespearean actress and Shakespeare himself. Jong is a good writer, a knowledgable writer, a strong writer who tackles this in a very entertaining and enlightening way.
Her first novel, Fear of Flying, was notorious for its treatment of casual sex, but then in the 1970s, so was Cosmopolitan magazine. Time has passed since then.
Her first novel, Fear of Flying, was notorious for its treatment of casual sex, but then in the 1970s, so was Cosmopolitan magazine. Time has passed since then.
October 20, 2008
This was my first Erica Jong book. I enjoyed it, although the untranslated Italian words were a tiny bit annoying. I'm not sure why she's considered so sexually controversial, although maybe Fear of Flying is more intense. Or maybe I've just read too many smutty romance novels.
I'd put this at 3 stars for writing style and initial impression, but the whole parallel Shakespeare universe thing bumps it up to 4 stars for me. Plus, there's probably some deep meaning in there somewhere that will occur to me a month from now.
I'd put this at 3 stars for writing style and initial impression, but the whole parallel Shakespeare universe thing bumps it up to 4 stars for me. Plus, there's probably some deep meaning in there somewhere that will occur to me a month from now.
December 9, 2017
This book definitely provided some entertainment and a "carrying away" effect, which was fun. However, the main character, Jessica, didn't develop as deeply as I kept anticipating she would. It's a light-hearted story, and an adventure into the past where she meets up with Shakespeare himself. I found this an interesting and unexpected aspect of the story. Jessica lives a very privileged life, but like many of us, makes decisions that don't allow her to fully realize her potential and connect with those she loves...
June 21, 2010
A beautifully written story of an actress who attends a film festival in Venice, then heads into the past to meet young Will. As she studies for the part of Jessica, Shylock's daughter in the The Merchant of Venice, a witch casts a spell that brings the past and present together.
January 10, 2008
Originally published as Serenissima, this is the erotic tale of an actress who goes to Venice to film The Merchant of Venice. She beomes infatuated with the ancient city and teeters between dreamworld and reality. Are these people she meets real or part of a fantasy...could she be falling for Shakespeare himself?
March 2, 2013
My favourite Erica Jong's novel. I haven't read this in many years but the memories are good ones. I loved the timelessness of the storytelling, the out of time, out of body experience, Shakespeare in Venice and how the heroine slips into Jessica's persona trying to live up to what she knows of the play's history.
I'm definitely gonna reread it this year.
I'm definitely gonna reread it this year.
December 10, 2008
Awful. The main character spends most of the time talking about her designer 80s clothes.
Also annoying: rambling on and on and using strings of multiple adjectives when only one is needed. The lack of conciseness got old after 20 pages.
Also annoying: rambling on and on and using strings of multiple adjectives when only one is needed. The lack of conciseness got old after 20 pages.
January 26, 2008
This is the only book I've read by Jong. Picked it up because it is set in Venice and really liked it.
September 26, 2009
Yet another strange little book I chose from my inherited collection simply because it was slim (before our trip) . . . it was compelling and right up my alley (Venice, Shakespeare), but also weird.
June 19, 2011
Imaginative, rewarding fast read with something to think about afterward. The leading characters are a mature actress and the city of Venice.
May 4, 2022
Poesia e lirismo a enésima potência ou esnobismo e prepotência literária? Já é o terceiro livro que leio dessa autora e não consigo chegar a uma conclusão.
Érica Jong faz parte da geração de escritores estadunidenses que agonizava em seus protestos de revolução sexual, filosofia liberal e a moda da psicanálise. Você irá achar tudo isso em seus textos - interessante para alguns, mas pode ser um verdadeiro porre para quem discorde ou simplesmente não se importe com esse tipo de intimismo.
Pois Sereníssima, com suas descrições e acontecimentos rápidos e mirabolantes é acima de tudo um livro intimista. Não espere uma riqueza estilo Clarice Lispector, Erica Jong não chega a esse naipe, mas pode facilmente te prender pela emoção, que como a nossa escritora, faz questão de exsudar no livro.
A protagonista se envolve num tórrido e surreal caso com ninguém mais, ninguém menos que Willian Shakespeare, e numa delicada mistura de sonetos, trechos e crítica tece uma trama que não é inteiramente original, mas que tem um forte gosto de saudosismo artístico.
Ame ou odeie, sua impressão será formada mais pela autora, que usa a auto-inserção como se fosse o pão-nosso-de-cada-dia, do que pela história em si.
Érica Jong faz parte da geração de escritores estadunidenses que agonizava em seus protestos de revolução sexual, filosofia liberal e a moda da psicanálise. Você irá achar tudo isso em seus textos - interessante para alguns, mas pode ser um verdadeiro porre para quem discorde ou simplesmente não se importe com esse tipo de intimismo.
Pois Sereníssima, com suas descrições e acontecimentos rápidos e mirabolantes é acima de tudo um livro intimista. Não espere uma riqueza estilo Clarice Lispector, Erica Jong não chega a esse naipe, mas pode facilmente te prender pela emoção, que como a nossa escritora, faz questão de exsudar no livro.
A protagonista se envolve num tórrido e surreal caso com ninguém mais, ninguém menos que Willian Shakespeare, e numa delicada mistura de sonetos, trechos e crítica tece uma trama que não é inteiramente original, mas que tem um forte gosto de saudosismo artístico.
Ame ou odeie, sua impressão será formada mais pela autora, que usa a auto-inserção como se fosse o pão-nosso-de-cada-dia, do que pela história em si.
September 15, 2018
The best thing about this is that its finally over, I have never been quite so disappointed by written word since F. Scott Fitzgerald's Curious Case of Benjamin Button. I'm sure that she has written great things, however this isn't one of them. I was truly looking forward to time travelling with Willy Shakes, and instead. I was fooled by an extremely creative cover and an insanely awesome plot. I just wish it was more, I don't know, I wish it was more than what it was. Christ!
September 8, 2021
The first half, 100 pages or so, with a middle-aged actress showing up to a film festival in Venice, is vapid and repetitive. The second half, where she magically goes back in time to meet and fall in love with “Will” Shakespeare, gets off to a laughably unerotic start with him in a threesome. I’ll spare you the details, and hope I forget them. Not recommended.
December 29, 2019
Venice, time-travel, Shakespeare, history
With so many of my favorites in one book, how could I not love it? I also enjoy and admire Jong’s use of vocabulary. Such beautiful, thoughtful writing.
With so many of my favorites in one book, how could I not love it? I also enjoy and admire Jong’s use of vocabulary. Such beautiful, thoughtful writing.
September 10, 2017
Non ho proprio capito il senso di questo libro.. Noioso e basta.
Avevo grandi aspettative e invece..
Avevo grandi aspettative e invece..
April 16, 2019
Love Erica Jong, not my favorite of her books, more to follow...
August 7, 2019
Absolutely bonkers. Erica Jong is at once a caricature of herself and an absolute unironic treasure. I had so much goddamn fun with this sparkling fever-dream of a novel.
April 2, 2020
Jeg er ellers glad for Erica Jong, men ikke denne her. Jeg gav den ellers en ekstra chance efter en pause.
December 7, 2020
Izgubljen čas. Nepovratno.
Read
May 24, 2022This is Shakespeare fan fiction. Breathless and unintentionally cheesy and not my thing at all. Blech.
November 23, 2025
"Will catches the baby as it squeezes out of eternity and into time."
Displaying 1 - 30 of 51 reviews