Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol (1809–1852) was a Russian-language writer of Ukrainian origin, celebrated for short stories like “The Nose,” “The Overcoat,” and Dead Souls. His fiction combines social satire, grotesque comedy, and a deep concern with moral and spiritual life, and lord knows he isn’t a favourite of mine.
How do you turn him into D’Annunzio? By showing him Rome, apparently.
In this highly lyrical short story, an unfinished “fragment” as it’s often described, you’ll breathe the colours and the temperature of Rome and Paris, down to the very fabric that tie together those two extremely different realities and the different ways they might speak to different ages of man. The story follows a young Italian prince’s education and love, written as an impassioned tribute to the city. It’s an absolute gem.
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