What do you think?
Rate this book
韦畏谓 蔚蟺慰蠂萎 蟿慰蠀 魏蠀谓畏纬喂慰蠉
螘谓伪蟼 蟺蔚喂蟽渭伪蟿喂魏蠈蟼 苇蟻蠅蟿伪蟼 魏伪喂 渭喂伪 伪位蠀蟽委未伪 胃伪谓维蟿蠅谓 伪谓伪蟽蟿伪蟿蠋谓慰蠀谓 蟽蟿喂蟼 伪蟻蠂苇蟼 蟿慰蠀 伪喂蠋谓伪 渭伪蟼 苇谓伪 渭喂魏蟻蠈 蠂蠅蟻喂蠈 蟿畏蟼 危喂魏蔚位委伪蟼. 韦慰 尾喂尾位委慰 伪蠀蟿蠈, 蠂伪蟻喂蟿蠅渭苇谓畏 魏蠅渭蠅未委伪 魏喂 苇谓伪 蔚委未慰蟼 喂未喂蠈渭慰蟻蠁慰蠀 伪蟽蟿蠀谓慰渭喂魏慰蠉 渭蠀胃喂蟽蟿慰蟻萎渭伪蟿慰蟼 蟿伪蠀蟿蠈蠂蟻慰谓伪, 纬蟻伪渭渭苇谓慰 渭蔚 蟿畏 渭伪蔚蟽蟿蟻委伪, 蟿慰 渭蟺蟻委慰 魏伪喂 蟿慰 蠂喂慰蠉渭慰蟻 蟺慰蠀 蠂伪蟻伪魏蟿畏蟻委味慰蠀谓 蟿慰 蟽蠀纬纬蟻伪蠁苇伪, 蔚委谓伪喂, 蠈蟺蠅蟼 魏伪喂 蟿伪 维位位伪 蟿慰蠀 渭蠀胃喂蟽蟿慰蟻萎渭伪蟿伪, 渭喂伪 蟿蔚蟻维蟽蟿喂伪 蔚魏未慰蟿喂魏萎 魏伪喂 伪谓伪纬谓蠅蟽蟿喂魏萎 蔚蟺喂蟿蠀蠂委伪 蟽蟿畏谓 螜蟿伪位委伪.
205 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1992
59 people are currently reading
420 people want to read
About the author
Andrea Camilleri
474听books2,396听followersAndrea Camilleri was an Italian writer. He is considered one of the greatest Italian writers of both 20th and 21st centuries.
Originally from Porto Empedocle, Sicily, Camilleri began studies at the Faculty of Literature in 1944, without concluding them, meanwhile publishing poems and short stories. Around this time he joined the Italian Communist Party.
From 1948 to 1950 Camilleri studied stage and film direction at the Silvio D'Amico Academy of Dramatic Arts, and began to take on work as a director and screenwriter, directing especially plays by Pirandello and Beckett. As a matter of fact, his parents knew Pirandello and were even distant friends, as he tells in his essay on Pirandello "Biography of the changed son". His most famous works, the Montalbano series show many pirandellian elements: for example, the wild olive tree that helps Montalbano think, is on stage in his late work "The giants of the mountain"
With RAI, Camilleri worked on several TV productions, such as Inspector Maigret with Gino Cervi. In 1977 he returned to the Academy of Dramatic Arts, holding the chair of Movie Direction, and occupying it for 20 years.
In 1978 Camilleri wrote his first novel Il Corso Delle Cose ("The Way Things Go"). This was followed by Un Filo di Fumo ("A Thread of Smoke") in 1980. Neither of these works enjoyed any significant amount of popularity.
In 1992, after a long pause of 12 years, Camilleri once more took up novel-writing. A new book, La Stagione della Caccia ("The Hunting Season") turned out to be a best-seller.
In 1994 Camilleri published the first in a long series of novels: La forma dell'Acqua (The Shape of Water) featured the character of Inspector Montalbano, a fractious Sicilian detective in the police force of Vig脿ta, an imaginary Sicilian town. The series is written in Italian but with a substantial sprinkling of Sicilian phrases and grammar. The name Montalbano is an homage to the Spanish writer Manuel V谩zquez Montalb谩n; the similarities between Montalban's Pepe Carvalho and Camilleri's fictional detective are remarkable. Both writers make great play of their protagonists' gastronomic preferences.
This feature provides an interesting quirk which has become something of a fad among his readership even in mainland Italy. The TV adaptation of Montalbano's adventures, starring the perfectly-cast Luca Zingaretti, further increased Camilleri's popularity to such a point that in 2003 Camilleri's home town, Porto Empedocle - on which Vig脿ta is modelled - took the extraordinary step of changing its official denomination to that of Porto Empedocle Vig脿ta, no doubt with an eye to capitalising on the tourism possibilities thrown up by the author's work.
In 1998 Camilleri won the Nino Martoglio International Book Award.
Camilleri lived in Rome where he worked as a TV and theatre director. About 10 million copies of his novels have been sold to date, and are becoming increasingly popular in the UK and North America.
In addition to the degree of popularity brought him by the novels, in recent months Andrea Camilleri has become even more of a media icon thanks to the parodies aired on an RAI radio show, where popular comedian, TV-host and impression artist Fiorello presents him as a raspy voiced, caustic character, madly in love with cigarettes and smoking (Camilleri is well-known for his love of tobacco).
He received an honorary degree from University of Pisa in 2005.
Originally from Porto Empedocle, Sicily, Camilleri began studies at the Faculty of Literature in 1944, without concluding them, meanwhile publishing poems and short stories. Around this time he joined the Italian Communist Party.
From 1948 to 1950 Camilleri studied stage and film direction at the Silvio D'Amico Academy of Dramatic Arts, and began to take on work as a director and screenwriter, directing especially plays by Pirandello and Beckett. As a matter of fact, his parents knew Pirandello and were even distant friends, as he tells in his essay on Pirandello "Biography of the changed son". His most famous works, the Montalbano series show many pirandellian elements: for example, the wild olive tree that helps Montalbano think, is on stage in his late work "The giants of the mountain"
With RAI, Camilleri worked on several TV productions, such as Inspector Maigret with Gino Cervi. In 1977 he returned to the Academy of Dramatic Arts, holding the chair of Movie Direction, and occupying it for 20 years.
In 1978 Camilleri wrote his first novel Il Corso Delle Cose ("The Way Things Go"). This was followed by Un Filo di Fumo ("A Thread of Smoke") in 1980. Neither of these works enjoyed any significant amount of popularity.
In 1992, after a long pause of 12 years, Camilleri once more took up novel-writing. A new book, La Stagione della Caccia ("The Hunting Season") turned out to be a best-seller.
In 1994 Camilleri published the first in a long series of novels: La forma dell'Acqua (The Shape of Water) featured the character of Inspector Montalbano, a fractious Sicilian detective in the police force of Vig脿ta, an imaginary Sicilian town. The series is written in Italian but with a substantial sprinkling of Sicilian phrases and grammar. The name Montalbano is an homage to the Spanish writer Manuel V谩zquez Montalb谩n; the similarities between Montalban's Pepe Carvalho and Camilleri's fictional detective are remarkable. Both writers make great play of their protagonists' gastronomic preferences.
This feature provides an interesting quirk which has become something of a fad among his readership even in mainland Italy. The TV adaptation of Montalbano's adventures, starring the perfectly-cast Luca Zingaretti, further increased Camilleri's popularity to such a point that in 2003 Camilleri's home town, Porto Empedocle - on which Vig脿ta is modelled - took the extraordinary step of changing its official denomination to that of Porto Empedocle Vig脿ta, no doubt with an eye to capitalising on the tourism possibilities thrown up by the author's work.
In 1998 Camilleri won the Nino Martoglio International Book Award.
Camilleri lived in Rome where he worked as a TV and theatre director. About 10 million copies of his novels have been sold to date, and are becoming increasingly popular in the UK and North America.
In addition to the degree of popularity brought him by the novels, in recent months Andrea Camilleri has become even more of a media icon thanks to the parodies aired on an RAI radio show, where popular comedian, TV-host and impression artist Fiorello presents him as a raspy voiced, caustic character, madly in love with cigarettes and smoking (Camilleri is well-known for his love of tobacco).
He received an honorary degree from University of Pisa in 2005.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 154 reviews
May 26, 2017
3.5
"Chi 猫 il picciliddo?"
"Il figlio della mogliere di un mio campiere."
"D'accordo, ma tu che ci trasi?"
"Ci trasu, Scim猫. Come ci tras矛 lo spirito santo."
(I'm sorry, but every attempt of mine would make a despicable case of lost in translation.)
*Scroll down to read the Italian review
This was my first Camilleri (I know: shame on me, shame on my cow) but I think that it will be kind of a standing appointment from now on.
The Hunting Season could well be one of the strangest books I have ever read. Eccentric, caricatural characters, a totally predictable mystery (which, in the present case, isn't a reason for enjoying the book less, I assure you) and one of the most delicious writing styles I've ever encountered. It's a strange mix. I enjoyed it immensely, partly due, also, to my being from Sicily. The novel is set in the late XIX century, and though of course our way of thinking isn't that archaic anymore, it's astonishing to how Camilleri seized and reproduced on the paper the atmosphere you breathe in a country village. I adored it to pieces. I see, though, that the story is somehow underwhelming.
Next step: Montalbano.
---
Questa era il mio primo Camilleri (lo so: disonore su di me, disonore sulla mia mucca) ma credo che d'ora in poi ne far貌 una specie di appuntamento fisso.
La stagione della caccia potrebbe benissimo essere uno dei libri 辫颈霉 strani che io abbia mai letto. Personaggi eccentrici e caricaturali, un giallo assolutamente prevedibile (cosa che tuttavia, vi assicuro, non costituisce una ragione per godersi questa lettura in misura minore) e uno degli stili 辫颈霉 deliziosi in cui mai mi sia imbattuta. Si tratta di una miscela strana. Io l'ho apprezzata immensamente, cosa che, suppongo, sia da imputare almeno parzialmente al mio essere siciliana. Il romanzo 猫 ambientato nel tardo Ottocento e, anche se ovviamente la mentalit脿 siciliana non raggiunge 辫颈霉 questi livelli d'arcaicit脿, trovo incredibile come Camilleri abbia saputo cogliere e riprodurre nero su bianco l'atmosfera, l'aria che ancora si respira nei paesini del sud. Per questo, l'ho amato follemente. Ma non posso ignorare che la trama risulti alquanto insoddisfacente.
Prossimo passo: Montalbano.
"Chi 猫 il picciliddo?"
"Il figlio della mogliere di un mio campiere."
"D'accordo, ma tu che ci trasi?"
"Ci trasu, Scim猫. Come ci tras矛 lo spirito santo."
(I'm sorry, but every attempt of mine would make a despicable case of lost in translation.)
*Scroll down to read the Italian review
This was my first Camilleri (I know: shame on me, shame on my cow) but I think that it will be kind of a standing appointment from now on.
The Hunting Season could well be one of the strangest books I have ever read. Eccentric, caricatural characters, a totally predictable mystery (which, in the present case, isn't a reason for enjoying the book less, I assure you) and one of the most delicious writing styles I've ever encountered. It's a strange mix. I enjoyed it immensely, partly due, also, to my being from Sicily. The novel is set in the late XIX century, and though of course our way of thinking isn't that archaic anymore, it's astonishing to how Camilleri seized and reproduced on the paper the atmosphere you breathe in a country village. I adored it to pieces. I see, though, that the story is somehow underwhelming.
Next step: Montalbano.
---
Questa era il mio primo Camilleri (lo so: disonore su di me, disonore sulla mia mucca) ma credo che d'ora in poi ne far貌 una specie di appuntamento fisso.
La stagione della caccia potrebbe benissimo essere uno dei libri 辫颈霉 strani che io abbia mai letto. Personaggi eccentrici e caricaturali, un giallo assolutamente prevedibile (cosa che tuttavia, vi assicuro, non costituisce una ragione per godersi questa lettura in misura minore) e uno degli stili 辫颈霉 deliziosi in cui mai mi sia imbattuta. Si tratta di una miscela strana. Io l'ho apprezzata immensamente, cosa che, suppongo, sia da imputare almeno parzialmente al mio essere siciliana. Il romanzo 猫 ambientato nel tardo Ottocento e, anche se ovviamente la mentalit脿 siciliana non raggiunge 辫颈霉 questi livelli d'arcaicit脿, trovo incredibile come Camilleri abbia saputo cogliere e riprodurre nero su bianco l'atmosfera, l'aria che ancora si respira nei paesini del sud. Per questo, l'ho amato follemente. Ma non posso ignorare che la trama risulti alquanto insoddisfacente.
Prossimo passo: Montalbano.
February 26, 2019
La misoginia corre sul filo che porta a Vigata
La lettura ha relazione strettissima con l鈥檃nnuncio dell鈥檃ndata in onda della trasposizione televisiva del racconto lungo in oggetto. Prevedendo con certezza assoluta che non avrei potuto godermelo - gli orari non coincidono 辫颈霉 con i miei 鈥� mi sono precipitata a leggermelo sul mio Meridiano di Romanzi Storici e Civili, del nostro contemporaneo Tiresia.
Il piacere che provo nel leggere le storie di Camilleri non ha rapporto n茅 con la sua indubbia perizia di scrittore affabulatore n茅 con quella di inventore di una neolingua ma con il rapporto che [le sue storie] hanno fra me e la memoria della mia terra.
La sua e la mia et脿 hanno un gap notevole, quasi un trentennio, ma ho avuto la fortuna di vivere i miei primi anni in un tempo e in una terra che nel bene e nel male avevano tempi lenti e dilatati. Cosa che mi permette di cogliere le atmosfere barocche tessute di metafore per me pane quotidiano. La metafora 猫 il nostro parlare, infatti. Non usiamo parole correnti se non lo stretto indispensabile. Usiamo parole su cui si 猫 depositata la storia del linguaggio di questa terra, quello che ci permetteva di usarlo senza sprecarne tanto.
Fof貌 La Matina, il protagonista se cos矛 si pu貌 dire, 猫 un ingravidabalconi, parola figlia della 辫颈霉 antica 鈥榤辫谤别苍补蹿颈苍别蝉迟谤别. La parola potrebbe essere anche una 鈥榥ciuria (il soprannome che stigmatizza i tratti fisici o comportamentali non proprio 鈥渞egolari鈥�) se non fosse il perno in questo racconto: se il ragazzino Fof貌 non fosse stato attratto eroticamente dalle bambine affacciate ai barocchi balconi siciliani, non avrebbe incrociato gli occhi della piccola Ntont貌, discendente di Federico II e perci貌 irraggiungibile per lui discendente, invece, da 鈥�perincritati".
Due alberi genealogici inconciliabili a tal punto che la pedata, data dal marchese padre al piccolo Fof貌, innescher脿 tutta la cascata di eventi che avranno luogo a Vigata vent鈥檃nni dopo, al suo ritorno oramai farmacista e deciso a sposare l鈥檃mata ma dopo averle sterminato la famiglia.
Ma ancora la parola ingravida balconi non ha dispiegato tutto il senso che Camilleri le attribuisce nel racconto. Infatti il giovanotto, dopo avere lavato l鈥檕nta e impalmato l鈥檃mata, si accorge che non ne valeva la pena: 鈥� N茅 per 鈥楴tont貌 n茅 per qualsiasi altra femmina al mondo鈥� La femmina 猫 lo scarso rimpiazzo di una buona minata鈥�. La scoperta di se stesso non lo porta alla liberazione dal giogo del desiderio della femmina ma dritto dritto al patibolo: meglio morto che ammogliato?
La moglie, dal canto suo, si rifugia nella follia simulata. E allora: meglio folle che sedotta e abbandonata?
L鈥檃vevo sospettato che Montalbano fosse un ingravidabalconi: quel suo tenere a distanza Livia mi 猫 sempre puzzato e credo anche a Rosetta, la moglie di Camilleri: di quel sentire alla Karl Krauss (il primo che abbia anteposto la minata alla fottuta, e scusate il linguaggio poco aulico) ne sapeva qualcosa da almeno un trentennio. Lo dice chiaramente l鈥橝ndrea chiudendo le note al racconto con scuse e ringraziamenti alla moglie a cui non sarebbe piaciuto affatto il significare di 鈥� ingravidabalconi鈥� cos矛 chiaramente teorizzato nel racconto.
La lettura ha relazione strettissima con l鈥檃nnuncio dell鈥檃ndata in onda della trasposizione televisiva del racconto lungo in oggetto. Prevedendo con certezza assoluta che non avrei potuto godermelo - gli orari non coincidono 辫颈霉 con i miei 鈥� mi sono precipitata a leggermelo sul mio Meridiano di Romanzi Storici e Civili, del nostro contemporaneo Tiresia.
Il piacere che provo nel leggere le storie di Camilleri non ha rapporto n茅 con la sua indubbia perizia di scrittore affabulatore n茅 con quella di inventore di una neolingua ma con il rapporto che [le sue storie] hanno fra me e la memoria della mia terra.
La sua e la mia et脿 hanno un gap notevole, quasi un trentennio, ma ho avuto la fortuna di vivere i miei primi anni in un tempo e in una terra che nel bene e nel male avevano tempi lenti e dilatati. Cosa che mi permette di cogliere le atmosfere barocche tessute di metafore per me pane quotidiano. La metafora 猫 il nostro parlare, infatti. Non usiamo parole correnti se non lo stretto indispensabile. Usiamo parole su cui si 猫 depositata la storia del linguaggio di questa terra, quello che ci permetteva di usarlo senza sprecarne tanto.
Fof貌 La Matina, il protagonista se cos矛 si pu貌 dire, 猫 un ingravidabalconi, parola figlia della 辫颈霉 antica 鈥榤辫谤别苍补蹿颈苍别蝉迟谤别. La parola potrebbe essere anche una 鈥榥ciuria (il soprannome che stigmatizza i tratti fisici o comportamentali non proprio 鈥渞egolari鈥�) se non fosse il perno in questo racconto: se il ragazzino Fof貌 non fosse stato attratto eroticamente dalle bambine affacciate ai barocchi balconi siciliani, non avrebbe incrociato gli occhi della piccola Ntont貌, discendente di Federico II e perci貌 irraggiungibile per lui discendente, invece, da 鈥�perincritati".
Due alberi genealogici inconciliabili a tal punto che la pedata, data dal marchese padre al piccolo Fof貌, innescher脿 tutta la cascata di eventi che avranno luogo a Vigata vent鈥檃nni dopo, al suo ritorno oramai farmacista e deciso a sposare l鈥檃mata ma dopo averle sterminato la famiglia.
Ma ancora la parola ingravida balconi non ha dispiegato tutto il senso che Camilleri le attribuisce nel racconto. Infatti il giovanotto, dopo avere lavato l鈥檕nta e impalmato l鈥檃mata, si accorge che non ne valeva la pena: 鈥� N茅 per 鈥楴tont貌 n茅 per qualsiasi altra femmina al mondo鈥� La femmina 猫 lo scarso rimpiazzo di una buona minata鈥�. La scoperta di se stesso non lo porta alla liberazione dal giogo del desiderio della femmina ma dritto dritto al patibolo: meglio morto che ammogliato?
La moglie, dal canto suo, si rifugia nella follia simulata. E allora: meglio folle che sedotta e abbandonata?
L鈥檃vevo sospettato che Montalbano fosse un ingravidabalconi: quel suo tenere a distanza Livia mi 猫 sempre puzzato e credo anche a Rosetta, la moglie di Camilleri: di quel sentire alla Karl Krauss (il primo che abbia anteposto la minata alla fottuta, e scusate il linguaggio poco aulico) ne sapeva qualcosa da almeno un trentennio. Lo dice chiaramente l鈥橝ndrea chiudendo le note al racconto con scuse e ringraziamenti alla moglie a cui non sarebbe piaciuto affatto il significare di 鈥� ingravidabalconi鈥� cos矛 chiaramente teorizzato nel racconto.
August 6, 2014
This is ok.
Two stars means "It's ok"
I'm not going to read this again, though.
Usually, when you get a bawdy tale like this, it's a facade for some biting social commentary and there's usually a zinger at the end, like all the jerks get their comeuppances or the women really rule the town or he would have gotten away with it, too, had it not been for you meddling brats or something similar.
This one...well, I think most readers know there's murder afoot and recognize the culprit so all that remains is to amuse through bawdy humor and witty one-liners on the general patheticness of humankind then wrap it all up with a twist!
Only that didn't happen so much. Yes, there was lots everyone having sex with everyone and their goats plus ridiculous situations and general silliness but that undertone of "See how I mock the [target]?" was missing or if it was there, it was far too subtle for an ogre like me to pick up. I didn't find the story wry, I wasn't really amused, I never giggled with snideness. And the twist is only a twist if you haven't already figured it all out. I thought the pharmacist was gay, though I'm not sure how that would have impacted the overall story, but no. That wasn't it at all. The twist fell flat.
I'll chalk this one up to lost in translation and move on.
Two stars means "It's ok"
I'm not going to read this again, though.
Usually, when you get a bawdy tale like this, it's a facade for some biting social commentary and there's usually a zinger at the end, like all the jerks get their comeuppances or the women really rule the town or he would have gotten away with it, too, had it not been for you meddling brats or something similar.
This one...well, I think most readers know there's murder afoot and recognize the culprit so all that remains is to amuse through bawdy humor and witty one-liners on the general patheticness of humankind then wrap it all up with a twist!
Only that didn't happen so much. Yes, there was lots everyone having sex with everyone and their goats plus ridiculous situations and general silliness but that undertone of "See how I mock the [target]?" was missing or if it was there, it was far too subtle for an ogre like me to pick up. I didn't find the story wry, I wasn't really amused, I never giggled with snideness. And the twist is only a twist if you haven't already figured it all out. I thought the pharmacist was gay, though I'm not sure how that would have impacted the overall story, but no. That wasn't it at all. The twist fell flat.
I'll chalk this one up to lost in translation and move on.
October 30, 2023
"La femmina 猫 lo scarso rimpiazzo di una buona minata".
Non ho visto l'omonimo film quindi il libro me lo sono "gustato" fino in fondo. Si parla di vendetta. Il famosissimo proverbio dice che "la vendetta 猫 un piatto che va servito freddo"... e cos矛 猫 per questo bel romanzo di Andrea Camilleri. "La stagione della caccia" 猫 un giallo storico (siamo nella Sicilia di fine '800) decisamente "sui generis": piacevole ed ironico (si ride proprio dei morti, e delle loro morti, che incontreremo strada facendo nella lettura).
La particolarit脿 di questo romanzo breve 猫 il suo essere corale: siamo in una Vigata, la futura location delle indagini di Montalbano, piena zeppa di tanti personaggi (uno 辫颈霉 simpatico dell'altro... anche quelli un po' antipatici!), con Alfonso "Fof貌" La Matina che assurge a personaggio principale solo nel finale.
Una sola cosa mi ha lasciato un po' perplesso (e per questo ho tolto una "stella" dal mio voto): sul finire della storia, che bisogno c'era di introdurre un nuovo personaggio, l'ufficiale di polizia appena trasferito a Vigata, quando in paese c'era gi脿 il delegato Portera, peraltro gi脿 vicinissimo alla soluzione del giallo?
[]
Non ho visto l'omonimo film quindi il libro me lo sono "gustato" fino in fondo. Si parla di vendetta. Il famosissimo proverbio dice che "la vendetta 猫 un piatto che va servito freddo"... e cos矛 猫 per questo bel romanzo di Andrea Camilleri. "La stagione della caccia" 猫 un giallo storico (siamo nella Sicilia di fine '800) decisamente "sui generis": piacevole ed ironico (si ride proprio dei morti, e delle loro morti, che incontreremo strada facendo nella lettura).
La particolarit脿 di questo romanzo breve 猫 il suo essere corale: siamo in una Vigata, la futura location delle indagini di Montalbano, piena zeppa di tanti personaggi (uno 辫颈霉 simpatico dell'altro... anche quelli un po' antipatici!), con Alfonso "Fof貌" La Matina che assurge a personaggio principale solo nel finale.
Una sola cosa mi ha lasciato un po' perplesso (e per questo ho tolto una "stella" dal mio voto): sul finire della storia, che bisogno c'era di introdurre un nuovo personaggio, l'ufficiale di polizia appena trasferito a Vigata, quando in paese c'era gi脿 il delegato Portera, peraltro gi脿 vicinissimo alla soluzione del giallo?
[]
August 2, 2020
"Stick a fork in it, it's done." And though I have heard the expression a thousand times, not once had I ever spoken it. Yet upon finishing the book I sat there thinking and those were the first words out of my mouth...Expect the unexpected from page one to the end. I really enjoyed it as an intelligent, quick, different paced read.
February 2, 2017
"This novel is dedicated to Rosetta, my wife. I don't think she likes it so much; not because of the way it's written, but because of what it means."
Andrea Camilleri is undoubtedly correct in this dedication. (He might have written, "I don't think most women will like it much...") For this novel, a sort of prequel to the Inspector Matalbano series is bawdy and, on the surface at least, somewhat misogynistic. (Deceptively so, as it turns out, but I must not say more.)
Hunting Season was written before any of the Mantalbano novels, which are among the most popular in Italy, but is set in Vig脿ta, Sicily as are all the novels in the Mantalbano series. (The fictional town is based on Porto Empedocle, where Camilleri grew up, and which has now changed its name to Porto Empedocle Vigata to attract tourists looking for the Sicilian version of Doc Martin's Port Wenn.)
There almost all similarities to the Montalbano series cease, for it is set in 1880, more than a century before Montalbano begins investigating crimes in Vig脿ta. The exception is the ribald humor. Cammilleri has said that he is almost unable to write without including black comedy, and Hunting Season is no exception. In addition to the comedic references to sex, Cammilleri takes his usual pokes at the Church by making a priest the butt of much of his humor. (There are a couple of puns here, but you'll have to read the book to get them.)
There is a mystery, of course, but not much of one. You know from the liner notes who's done it and have a pretty good idea why in the first chapter, but you have to watch him do it and wonder how, then puzzle as to if and how he will be caught, which is only resolved by the last joke, title of the book.
Those not familiar with Camilleri may be left scratching their heads, but veteran readers will feel right at home and howl at the dark comedy. (Be assured that the ever faithful Stephen Sartarelli also translated this novel and that, as one would expect, Santarelli provides two pages of notes to explain the Sicilian-insider references.
Andrea Camilleri is undoubtedly correct in this dedication. (He might have written, "I don't think most women will like it much...") For this novel, a sort of prequel to the Inspector Matalbano series is bawdy and, on the surface at least, somewhat misogynistic. (Deceptively so, as it turns out, but I must not say more.)
Hunting Season was written before any of the Mantalbano novels, which are among the most popular in Italy, but is set in Vig脿ta, Sicily as are all the novels in the Mantalbano series. (The fictional town is based on Porto Empedocle, where Camilleri grew up, and which has now changed its name to Porto Empedocle Vigata to attract tourists looking for the Sicilian version of Doc Martin's Port Wenn.)
There almost all similarities to the Montalbano series cease, for it is set in 1880, more than a century before Montalbano begins investigating crimes in Vig脿ta. The exception is the ribald humor. Cammilleri has said that he is almost unable to write without including black comedy, and Hunting Season is no exception. In addition to the comedic references to sex, Cammilleri takes his usual pokes at the Church by making a priest the butt of much of his humor. (There are a couple of puns here, but you'll have to read the book to get them.)
There is a mystery, of course, but not much of one. You know from the liner notes who's done it and have a pretty good idea why in the first chapter, but you have to watch him do it and wonder how, then puzzle as to if and how he will be caught, which is only resolved by the last joke, title of the book.
Those not familiar with Camilleri may be left scratching their heads, but veteran readers will feel right at home and howl at the dark comedy. (Be assured that the ever faithful Stephen Sartarelli also translated this novel and that, as one would expect, Santarelli provides two pages of notes to explain the Sicilian-insider references.
September 7, 2015
what a little treasure this is, we should rejoice it has finally been translated into English.
Due to complexity of the Italian nobility and the period it is set in, the book takes abit of an effort to get into to be in the moment. That said those who take the trouble to immerse themselve into this pre 20th Sicilly novel will be rewarded with a wonderful story.
It is a true reflection of the creative and wicked mind of Camilleri as he decimates a noble family with bad luck and tragic accidents. In the process a parish priest looks on appalled as grievous sins are committed by the family but his loyalty after God rest with the aristocracy.
However the divine is set aside when it looks like a human hand could be behind the death and meyhem.
I love the inspector montalbano series but what this book reveals is the craft and beauty of this author's writing; laced with human frailty, filled with humour and penned with insight and love.
I am an avid fan of the inspector montalbano series but realise it is the author and the translators that I truely enjoy. However other fans may find this a book too far from modern day Vigata to appreciate the magic of this wonderful story.
all I'd say is anyone drawn to read this book to please give it a chance and find the gems that are littered among its pages.
Due to complexity of the Italian nobility and the period it is set in, the book takes abit of an effort to get into to be in the moment. That said those who take the trouble to immerse themselve into this pre 20th Sicilly novel will be rewarded with a wonderful story.
It is a true reflection of the creative and wicked mind of Camilleri as he decimates a noble family with bad luck and tragic accidents. In the process a parish priest looks on appalled as grievous sins are committed by the family but his loyalty after God rest with the aristocracy.
However the divine is set aside when it looks like a human hand could be behind the death and meyhem.
I love the inspector montalbano series but what this book reveals is the craft and beauty of this author's writing; laced with human frailty, filled with humour and penned with insight and love.
I am an avid fan of the inspector montalbano series but realise it is the author and the translators that I truely enjoy. However other fans may find this a book too far from modern day Vigata to appreciate the magic of this wonderful story.
all I'd say is anyone drawn to read this book to please give it a chance and find the gems that are littered among its pages.
February 4, 2017
Let's just put it this way, I might like this book more if Wes Anderson decided to turn it into a movie. Anyone who has read this book and seen Wes Anderson's movies will understand what I mean. There is a lot of stories that all seem to revolve around one family, but how basically all of them die. Some of it is ridiculously humorous, others are bordering on tragic, but in each of their stories, there is this subtle dry humor (like the daughter painting her butt black, or the one son who is in love with a goat).
That last comment might draw people to read the book.
I was with the story the whole way until the ending. The ending literally killed it for me. I won't say anything to spoil it, but if you enjoy books that have endings that throw you for a loop, then go for it. I for one, don't even know if I can recommend this book to anyone.
That last comment might draw people to read the book.
I was with the story the whole way until the ending. The ending literally killed it for me. I won't say anything to spoil it, but if you enjoy books that have endings that throw you for a loop, then go for it. I for one, don't even know if I can recommend this book to anyone.
September 18, 2018
Andrea Camilleri is one of Italy's most revered authors. He is famous for his Inspector Montalbano novels. Unfortunately I do not have one of those laying around at present-so I had to settle for Hunting Season, which is a short novel that I am reasonably sure does not show off all of Camilleri's talent. As for the book itself: it was ribald, funny, and extremely entertaining. The back cover blurb gives away the "plot twist" but that does not make this read any less fun. And I feel it is a lot truer to Italian life than anything Frances Mayes ever wrote, even if the action does take place in a different century.
May 21, 2014
A strange, rambling,baudy, humorous story of revenge or love. You decide? A very different departure from the Montalbano novels as this is set in 19th Century Sicily and plays on the class distinctions of the peasants and the aristocracy. You think this book will be about the stranger returning to town but he's quickly usurped by the soap opera of a life that the local aristocrat or marchese lives. It sounds like a 19th Century reality show. It would have been nice to have a glossary of characters as I was constantly confusing some of the relatives.
March 13, 2019
L'avevo gi脿 letto anni fa, contenuto in un Meridiano sui romanzi di Camilleri, ma non lo ricordavo quasi 辫颈霉.
Cos矛, all'ennesima fiction Rai (la quale dovrebbe fare santo il romanziere per come tiene su l'audience di Rai 1 con i suoi prodotti, considerando anche che se li sceneggia da solo), mi ha punto vaghezza... no, non di guardare la fiction. Gi脿 i primi accenni al cast mi facevano venire l'orticaria; mesi fa ho visto i primi due, forse tre minuti, della "Scomparsa di Pat貌" con Nino Frassica, e ho dovuto cambiare per non cadere in deliquio.
Quell'altra con Michele Riondino, "La mossa del cavallo", s矛, carino lui (se si perdona ai produttori di avere riciclato l'attore gi脿 volto del giovane Montalbano), ma come ormai abbiamo capito Camilleri per la Rai 猫 come il maiale, non si butta via niente) per貌 diomio!, le inquadrature alla Sergio Leone!, lui che si fa la doccia con la signora che lo spia...! mammamia che squallore.
E niente.
L'ho riletto - "La stagione della caccia" - e, pur notando con fastidio qualche coloritura, volgarit脿, sessuocentrismo di troppo, in generale mi 猫 piaciuto anche stavolta. Non 猫 da tutti, no, prendere mezza riga di storia locale e costruirci sopra il conte di Montecristo.
Cos矛, all'ennesima fiction Rai (la quale dovrebbe fare santo il romanziere per come tiene su l'audience di Rai 1 con i suoi prodotti, considerando anche che se li sceneggia da solo), mi ha punto vaghezza... no, non di guardare la fiction. Gi脿 i primi accenni al cast mi facevano venire l'orticaria; mesi fa ho visto i primi due, forse tre minuti, della "Scomparsa di Pat貌" con Nino Frassica, e ho dovuto cambiare per non cadere in deliquio.
Quell'altra con Michele Riondino, "La mossa del cavallo", s矛, carino lui (se si perdona ai produttori di avere riciclato l'attore gi脿 volto del giovane Montalbano), ma come ormai abbiamo capito Camilleri per la Rai 猫 come il maiale, non si butta via niente) per貌 diomio!, le inquadrature alla Sergio Leone!, lui che si fa la doccia con la signora che lo spia...! mammamia che squallore.
E niente.
L'ho riletto - "La stagione della caccia" - e, pur notando con fastidio qualche coloritura, volgarit脿, sessuocentrismo di troppo, in generale mi 猫 piaciuto anche stavolta. Non 猫 da tutti, no, prendere mezza riga di storia locale e costruirci sopra il conte di Montecristo.
August 29, 2017
Tratto ilare e talvolta spassoso che fa da contrappunto a una storia amara. Vite sprecate, spontaneit脿 e altruismo.Provare a giudicare follia. Si legge, si stranisce, si desidera di non essere mai cos矛. Ottima prova del Camillo che mette noi a illo che mette noi a dura prova.
January 31, 2018
According to information on the cover Camilleri is the author of the Inspector Montalbano series. The name sounds familiar to me, but I have not read any of these books, or seen the popular TV-series based on the books. This book caught my eye because of the cover, which I love. The back cover text intrigued me as well:
"'Tomorrow afternoon they're going to open a pharmacy in town,' Mimi said as he was carrying his master, chair and all, from the palazzo to the Circolo. But as he was covering him with the blanket, since it was late February and frosty, the old man made as if to speak.'No,' he said with such effort that he began to sweat, despite the cold. 'No, Mimi. Tomorrow hunting season opens.''What are you saying, sir? It's a pharmacy that's opening, and the pharmacist is that gentleman stranger who greets you every time he passes by.''No, Mimi, tomorrow hunting season opens. And I don't want to get shot鈥�'"
It is Sicily in 1880 and a stranger arrives in Vig脿ta, and life will never be the same. The man, Fofo, opens a pharmacy and he soon becomes part of the local life, a man to whom everyone turns in trouble. He gets involved with the local nobility and nobody knows what to believe when one after the other of one of the families is being killed.
Having just read One Hundred Years of Solitude with its magical realism, I found the same magical writing here. The stories are not at all the same, but the author moves in a border line between the real, surrealistic and unreal. While reading I could not figure out the story and everything that happened. Was this a 'real' story or was it supposed to be some surrealistic, magical story with no roots in the real world.
It is not until the very end that Camilleri reveals the solution to the mystery killing. And even then, you wonder what was real and what was not. If anything. It is a mystery written in quite a different way, with wonderful prose, well defined characters with all their good and bad habits. Here is an extract with Camilleri's wonderful characterisation.
"Out of the first carriage stepped Don Tot貌, tall, erect, and bespectacled, his face so marked by wrinkles and scars that it looked like a sea chart, and his wife Harriet, a sort of beanpole with no tits of hips and sallow skin. From the second coach emerged Petru, he, too, about fifty years old, small of stature and thin, looking around, his little head turning left and right like a ferret's. Out of the third carriage stepped the black maid, fat and old and with two eyes so big they looked like portholes on a steamship Little children began to cry at the sight of her. The last carriage was full of luggage, which Mim矛 and Peppinella hoisted onto their shoulders and carried inside. Then the door shut behind them, and the celebration, for the moment, was over."
Andrea Camilleri is one of the most popular contemporary writers in Italy. It is just the more pity I have not come across him before. He is a new acquaintance that I would like to know more about. His writing is so interesting and every new page contains a surprise action, or a surprise character.
"'Tomorrow afternoon they're going to open a pharmacy in town,' Mimi said as he was carrying his master, chair and all, from the palazzo to the Circolo. But as he was covering him with the blanket, since it was late February and frosty, the old man made as if to speak.'No,' he said with such effort that he began to sweat, despite the cold. 'No, Mimi. Tomorrow hunting season opens.''What are you saying, sir? It's a pharmacy that's opening, and the pharmacist is that gentleman stranger who greets you every time he passes by.''No, Mimi, tomorrow hunting season opens. And I don't want to get shot鈥�'"
It is Sicily in 1880 and a stranger arrives in Vig脿ta, and life will never be the same. The man, Fofo, opens a pharmacy and he soon becomes part of the local life, a man to whom everyone turns in trouble. He gets involved with the local nobility and nobody knows what to believe when one after the other of one of the families is being killed.
Having just read One Hundred Years of Solitude with its magical realism, I found the same magical writing here. The stories are not at all the same, but the author moves in a border line between the real, surrealistic and unreal. While reading I could not figure out the story and everything that happened. Was this a 'real' story or was it supposed to be some surrealistic, magical story with no roots in the real world.
It is not until the very end that Camilleri reveals the solution to the mystery killing. And even then, you wonder what was real and what was not. If anything. It is a mystery written in quite a different way, with wonderful prose, well defined characters with all their good and bad habits. Here is an extract with Camilleri's wonderful characterisation.
"Out of the first carriage stepped Don Tot貌, tall, erect, and bespectacled, his face so marked by wrinkles and scars that it looked like a sea chart, and his wife Harriet, a sort of beanpole with no tits of hips and sallow skin. From the second coach emerged Petru, he, too, about fifty years old, small of stature and thin, looking around, his little head turning left and right like a ferret's. Out of the third carriage stepped the black maid, fat and old and with two eyes so big they looked like portholes on a steamship Little children began to cry at the sight of her. The last carriage was full of luggage, which Mim矛 and Peppinella hoisted onto their shoulders and carried inside. Then the door shut behind them, and the celebration, for the moment, was over."
Andrea Camilleri is one of the most popular contemporary writers in Italy. It is just the more pity I have not come across him before. He is a new acquaintance that I would like to know more about. His writing is so interesting and every new page contains a surprise action, or a surprise character.
April 28, 2014
An interesting and short book. I had trouble keeping the characters straight due to my difficulty with Italian names and titles. A good "mystery" but not a whodunit. It is instead a "why," and maybe a "which" were his victims. Certainly a good read for someone looking for something a little different.
April 3, 2014
You know that Camillleri dedicated the book to his wife Rosetta. It was based off a murder of love that a pharmacist did in 1875-1876 to 7 people, It is a rather risqu茅 novel that tends to grow on you.
August 7, 2017
Really pleased I tried out one of the non-Montalbano books. Beautifully crafted. Loved it.
March 14, 2019
Camilleri, prima di cominciare la narrazione, spoilera un po' il romanzo, perch茅 racconta da dove gli 猫 nata l'idea. Lui si giustifica dicendo che tanto non si tratta di un giallo, ma io sono rimasta un po' irritata pensando che invece avrebbe potuto esserlo se lui le sue belle rivelazioni le avesse fatte alla fine anzich茅 all'inizio. Credo che lo abbia fatto per dare 辫颈霉 rilevanza al personaggio di Fof貌 che, se nel film TV ha il ruolo di protagonista, qui ha la stessa rilevanza di altri personaggi come il marchese, per esempio, finch茅 non riesce finalmente nel suo intento.
Naturalmente ho visto prima il film TV, per cui lo spoiler 猫 stato totale per me, ma la lettura 猫 stata molto piacevole, perch茅 non leggevo Camilleri da moltissimo tempo, e ho trovato questo breve romanzo pieno di ironia e godibilissimo. Inoltre, ho constatato che la sceneggiatura del film TV 猫 stata fedelissima al romanzo, e mi sono quindi potuta chiarire alcune idee, visto che durante la visione mi ero persa un paio di passaggi.
Naturalmente ho visto prima il film TV, per cui lo spoiler 猫 stato totale per me, ma la lettura 猫 stata molto piacevole, perch茅 non leggevo Camilleri da moltissimo tempo, e ho trovato questo breve romanzo pieno di ironia e godibilissimo. Inoltre, ho constatato che la sceneggiatura del film TV 猫 stata fedelissima al romanzo, e mi sono quindi potuta chiarire alcune idee, visto che durante la visione mi ero persa un paio di passaggi.
May 29, 2023
This was sold as a 鈥渂awdy comedy鈥�, but I didn鈥檛 find it funny and good grief there was just too much sex in it for me. The description should have said it鈥檚 a 鈥渕urder mystery with lots of sex.鈥� If I鈥檇 known that I would have passed on it. The basic premise was interesting though and it was a quick read. 2.5 stars and I wouldn鈥檛 recommend it to anyone really.
October 9, 2017
Clever and entertaining. It kept my interest.
August 20, 2022
Stupendo. L'equivalente italiano di "Dieci piccoli indiani".
August 4, 2023
An Italian farce, which the blurb calls a bawdy, historical murder mystery. Bawdy yes, historical meh, murder mystery no.
Not being familiar or enjoying the multiple names characters are referred to, I found it difficult to get into. The plot was simple and the characters caricatures.
The most interesting part was the author鈥檚 note about the story鈥檚 origin.
Not being familiar or enjoying the multiple names characters are referred to, I found it difficult to get into. The plot was simple and the characters caricatures.
The most interesting part was the author鈥檚 note about the story鈥檚 origin.
January 21, 2024
Divertida, irreverente, caustica y un retrato magn铆fico de los personajes,
Maestro Camilleri.
Maestro Camilleri.
October 30, 2024
It wasn鈥檛 terrible but I just didn鈥檛 enjoy reading this
July 21, 2017
It is the most bizarre novel, set in the late 19th C Sicily. Here we are in Vigata again, moving back in history from the Inspector Montalbano's days, and changing the genre in the meantime as well.
It is a hybrid of a murder mystery and a comic novel, with literary connotations going back to Boccaccio and Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Its bawdy humour and lusty characters made me think of "Decameron". Its sense of surreal and the idea of predetermined fate and free will remind me of "100 years of solitude".
I liked the idea that the novel was inspired by a short extract from the old historic archives which mention a pharmacist who killed seven people for love.
As much as I love Camilleri, I struggled with this book. His writing is beautiful, but the characters, bordering on caricatures, were so bizarre, I felt I didn't warm up to any of them, apart probably from the poor lovelorn goat Carmelina.
It is a hybrid of a murder mystery and a comic novel, with literary connotations going back to Boccaccio and Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Its bawdy humour and lusty characters made me think of "Decameron". Its sense of surreal and the idea of predetermined fate and free will remind me of "100 years of solitude".
I liked the idea that the novel was inspired by a short extract from the old historic archives which mention a pharmacist who killed seven people for love.
As much as I love Camilleri, I struggled with this book. His writing is beautiful, but the characters, bordering on caricatures, were so bizarre, I felt I didn't warm up to any of them, apart probably from the poor lovelorn goat Carmelina.
November 8, 2018
This was like one forgotten book amidst my parents' and I'm not quite sure they'd read it at all -- it all but looked as if it'd been purchased and then forgotten, though I may as well be wrong. It came as a bit of a surprise to me, then, and then it kept surprising me. Which is rather curious for a book whose strenght, I believe, lays in its own predictability (although readers' mileage may vary on that account): there's something you know about from the start, and the book doesn't make a mystery of it. You know where the story's going, and even as it doesn't get there straight away (there are a couple of redherringesque moments to be sure), you know it's going to, in the end. And then it does, and it's kinda unceremonious and abrupt, and that does surprise you. That, and the fact that you (or, I should say, I) didn't quite expect this to be a story after all.
April 15, 2017
This was a light, entertaining, humorous book that reminded me of a comic, farcical opera. A mysterious stranger, who unbeknownst to residents of the town of Vigata lived as a child in that town, arrives with intentions to open a pharmacy. Thus begins a series of deaths in the family of Vigata's nobility that eventually eliminates all but one surviving member, Ntonto, the grand-daughter. The far-fetched and hilarious events that lead to the family's demise is the theme of this novel. This was a quick, fun book to read and motivates me to read the first of this author's Inspector Montalbano series.
September 20, 2011
Camilleri e' una garanzia. Nella introduzione scrive di aver tratto l'ispirazione del romanzo da una battuta registrata nella Inchiesta sulle condizioni della Sicilia del 1876. All'interrogante, che chiedeva se si fossero verificati fatti di sangue in un paesino, veniva risposto: "No. Fatta eccezione del farmacista che per amore ha ammazzato sette persone".
E da ci貌 ne ha tratto un libro amabilissimo.
E da ci貌 ne ha tratto un libro amabilissimo.
February 4, 2017
An odd read. Love the cover art.
December 22, 2014
I understand that authors want to write about new characters, but I miss Montalbano! This murder story could have easily been set in Vigata with Inspector Salvo Montalbano and his detectives, to much better effect.
July 7, 2017
Quirky, bawdy and with a wicked sense of humour, this is unlike anything I've read so far. Still, enjoyed my first foray into the works of Camilleri. Hope to follow this up with his Montalbano series soon enough.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 154 reviews
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get help and learn more about the design.