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Il Principe Felice & other stories
Questa edizione speciale raccoglie in un solo volume i migliori racconti del brillante scrittore irlandese Oscar Wilde: comprende sia quelli presenti ne Il Principe felice, pubblicato da Duckworth and Co. nel 1913, sia quelli inclusi in Una casa di melograni, pubblicato da Methuen Publishing nel 1915. Il Principe felice è illustrato dal londinese Charles Robinson (1870-1937), considerato un artista di libri fantastici il cui stile, delicato e pervaso da un finissimo senso dell’umorismo, risulta un meraviglioso accompagnamento alla sottile prosa di Wilde. Una casa dei melograni invece è illustrato dalla scozzese Jessie M. King (1875-1949), che arricchisce la magia di questi racconti con i suoi personalissimi disegni delle tipiche figure allungate, quasi manieristici, calati in ambientazioni oniriche e piene di colori.
227 pages, Hardcover
First published August 8, 2015
12 people are currently reading
123 people want to read
About the author
Oscar Wilde
5,495 books38.8k followersOscar Fingal O'Fflahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular playwrights in London in the early 1890s. He is best remembered for his epigrams and plays, his novel The Picture of Dorian Gray, and his criminal conviction for gross indecency for homosexual acts.
Wilde's parents were Anglo-Irish intellectuals in Dublin. In his youth, Wilde learned to speak fluent French and German. At university, he read Greats; he demonstrated himself to be an exceptional classicist, first at Trinity College Dublin, then at Magdalen College, Oxford. He became associated with the emerging philosophy of aestheticism, led by two of his tutors, Walter Pater and John Ruskin. After university, Wilde moved to London into fashionable cultural and social circles.
Wilde tried his hand at various literary activities: he wrote a play, published a book of poems, lectured in the United States and Canada on "The English Renaissance" in art and interior decoration, and then returned to London where he lectured on his American travels and wrote reviews for various periodicals. Known for his biting wit, flamboyant dress and glittering conversational skill, Wilde became one of the best-known personalities of his day. At the turn of the 1890s, he refined his ideas about the supremacy of art in a series of dialogues and essays, and incorporated themes of decadence, duplicity, and beauty into what would be his only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray (1890). Wilde returned to drama, writing Salome (1891) in French while in Paris, but it was refused a licence for England due to an absolute prohibition on the portrayal of Biblical subjects on the English stage. Undiscouraged, Wilde produced four society comedies in the early 1890s, which made him one of the most successful playwrights of late-Victorian London.
At the height of his fame and success, while An Ideal Husband (1895) and The Importance of Being Earnest (1895) were still being performed in London, Wilde issued a civil writ against John Sholto Douglas, the 9th Marquess of Queensberry for criminal libel. The Marquess was the father of Wilde's lover, Lord Alfred Douglas. The libel hearings unearthed evidence that caused Wilde to drop his charges and led to his own arrest and criminal prosecution for gross indecency with other males. The jury was unable to reach a verdict and so a retrial was ordered. In the second trial Wilde was convicted and sentenced to two years' hard labour, the maximum penalty, and was jailed from 1895 to 1897. During his last year in prison he wrote De Profundis (published posthumously in abridged form in 1905), a long letter that discusses his spiritual journey through his trials and is a dark counterpoint to his earlier philosophy of pleasure. On the day of his release, he caught the overnight steamer to France, never to return to Britain or Ireland. In France and Italy, he wrote his last work, The Ballad of Reading Gaol (1898), a long poem commemorating the harsh rhythms of prison life.
Wilde's parents were Anglo-Irish intellectuals in Dublin. In his youth, Wilde learned to speak fluent French and German. At university, he read Greats; he demonstrated himself to be an exceptional classicist, first at Trinity College Dublin, then at Magdalen College, Oxford. He became associated with the emerging philosophy of aestheticism, led by two of his tutors, Walter Pater and John Ruskin. After university, Wilde moved to London into fashionable cultural and social circles.
Wilde tried his hand at various literary activities: he wrote a play, published a book of poems, lectured in the United States and Canada on "The English Renaissance" in art and interior decoration, and then returned to London where he lectured on his American travels and wrote reviews for various periodicals. Known for his biting wit, flamboyant dress and glittering conversational skill, Wilde became one of the best-known personalities of his day. At the turn of the 1890s, he refined his ideas about the supremacy of art in a series of dialogues and essays, and incorporated themes of decadence, duplicity, and beauty into what would be his only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray (1890). Wilde returned to drama, writing Salome (1891) in French while in Paris, but it was refused a licence for England due to an absolute prohibition on the portrayal of Biblical subjects on the English stage. Undiscouraged, Wilde produced four society comedies in the early 1890s, which made him one of the most successful playwrights of late-Victorian London.
At the height of his fame and success, while An Ideal Husband (1895) and The Importance of Being Earnest (1895) were still being performed in London, Wilde issued a civil writ against John Sholto Douglas, the 9th Marquess of Queensberry for criminal libel. The Marquess was the father of Wilde's lover, Lord Alfred Douglas. The libel hearings unearthed evidence that caused Wilde to drop his charges and led to his own arrest and criminal prosecution for gross indecency with other males. The jury was unable to reach a verdict and so a retrial was ordered. In the second trial Wilde was convicted and sentenced to two years' hard labour, the maximum penalty, and was jailed from 1895 to 1897. During his last year in prison he wrote De Profundis (published posthumously in abridged form in 1905), a long letter that discusses his spiritual journey through his trials and is a dark counterpoint to his earlier philosophy of pleasure. On the day of his release, he caught the overnight steamer to France, never to return to Britain or Ireland. In France and Italy, he wrote his last work, The Ballad of Reading Gaol (1898), a long poem commemorating the harsh rhythms of prison life.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
December 31, 2025
No writes such rich prose as Wilde ♥️
October 20, 2024
Oscar Wilde’s A House of Pomegranates is a quaint, beautifully written collection of fairy tales that feels like a treasure trove of symbolism. Although the stories are rooted in the whimsical and magical world of fairy tales, I wouldn't necessarily say they are meant for children—at least not by today’s standards.
Perhaps it’s because I’m reading these tales through a modern lens, but Wilde’s sharp wit and underlying moral ambiguities seem more suited to adults who can appreciate the layers of meaning embedded within.
At the same time, the language is lush and ornate—Wilde at his finest—which adds to the feeling that these tales are not just meant to entertain, but to provoke thought. It is clear that in the stories beauty and art seem to hold as much importance as the plot itself.
Perhaps it’s because I’m reading these tales through a modern lens, but Wilde’s sharp wit and underlying moral ambiguities seem more suited to adults who can appreciate the layers of meaning embedded within.
At the same time, the language is lush and ornate—Wilde at his finest—which adds to the feeling that these tales are not just meant to entertain, but to provoke thought. It is clear that in the stories beauty and art seem to hold as much importance as the plot itself.
January 2, 2024
Enjoyable little stories. Apparently for children,
although they are rather macabre and with themes that are better suited to adults. A gentle dose of Wildean irony and wit without the affected cleverness of much of his writing. We also have some longer stories here that are a joy, in particular Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime and the Canterville Ghost.
although they are rather macabre and with themes that are better suited to adults. A gentle dose of Wildean irony and wit without the affected cleverness of much of his writing. We also have some longer stories here that are a joy, in particular Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime and the Canterville Ghost.
April 4, 2025
3.50 ⭐️
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May 8, 2011http://nhw.livejournal.com/962081.html[return][return]I was familiar with two of the stories, The Happy Prince and The Selfish Giant, from children's anthologies, but the others (The Nightingale And The Rose, The Devoted Friend and The Remarkable Rocket) were all new to me.[return][return]I'm not actually certain that I would give these stories to a child to read - they are all so very sad. The one with the happiest ending is The Selfish Giant, and even then he dies, if not quite as tragically as the protagonists of the other stories! Knowing what I do about Wilde's own life and death, I was on the lookout for reflections in the stories: but in fact what there is is rather surprising - The Selfish Giant is an explicitly Christian allegory, and The Remarkable Rocket, full of his own pretension, arrogance and snobbery, eventually terminally expends his considerable talents and energies in such a way that nobody notices.[return][return]These are uncomfortable stories, and should only be read by children (and perhaps even adults) under strict supervision.
May 8, 2011
My favorite is "The Nightingale and the Rose" as it showcases Wilde's classic wit and cynicism. The "fairy tales" read like Grimm's except they have endings similar to the following: and the witch cooked Hansel and Gretel and quite enjoyed her dinner and their parents died of despair.
August 2, 2017
This totally has a cliche ending, but it really giving so much value in life. Like the value of : no matter what, love always win. My 4stars are giving for the good fairytale for children. Id love to tell all of this story to my child someday..
June 14, 2007
Best fairy tales around.
September 30, 2011
Unos cuentecillos y fábulas preciosos. Me ha gustado mucho leerme este libro, es muy motivante =D
March 15, 2017
Fairy tales told with picturesque imagery, not so much for children. Classic reading.
February 16, 2020
A twist, a tale, retold, from old. This collection, this folklore is close to a bore, but still it is good before sleep.
October 5, 2020
Like fairytales. These are moral driven short stories. Delightful and beautiful.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews