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Roma
In the alleys and piazzas of contemporary Rome, among ruins new and old, people lead their fantastic lives made of mold and velvet, of dream and speculation. As much at home in the raucous inns as under the eaves of a cathedral, they blend, with a touch of ribaldry, the past and the future.
There is the Prince of Santo Stefano, whose days of austere dedication begin every morning with six o'clock mass; his daughter Norina, who hopes that adultery will bring her peace of mind; his son Gherardo, who finds a rich life supported by wealthy women more congenial to his tastes than the hard comforts of a clean conscience. And there is Checco, the flat-footed and blindly faithful servant of the old Prince: his highest aspiration is to don forever the habit of a monk; Mrs. Sequi, heiress to a long line of sausage-makers, who conquers Roman society with her outstanding chef and the help of her millions.
Unlikely, but real, all these characters belong to Rome: the city which reconciles extremes in its crucible of deep humanity.
This translation, by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, preserves the lyrical elegance of the original.
There is the Prince of Santo Stefano, whose days of austere dedication begin every morning with six o'clock mass; his daughter Norina, who hopes that adultery will bring her peace of mind; his son Gherardo, who finds a rich life supported by wealthy women more congenial to his tastes than the hard comforts of a clean conscience. And there is Checco, the flat-footed and blindly faithful servant of the old Prince: his highest aspiration is to don forever the habit of a monk; Mrs. Sequi, heiress to a long line of sausage-makers, who conquers Roman society with her outstanding chef and the help of her millions.
Unlikely, but real, all these characters belong to Rome: the city which reconciles extremes in its crucible of deep humanity.
This translation, by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, preserves the lyrical elegance of the original.
- GenresItaly
216 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1960
21 people want to read
About the author
Aldo Palazzeschi
91 books22 followersAldo Palazzeschi (Italian pronunciation: [ˈaldo palatˈtseski]; 2 February 1885 – 17 August 1974) was the pen name of Aldo Giurlani, an Italian novelist, poet, journalist and essayist.
He was born in Florence to a well-off, bourgeois family. Following his father's direction he studied accounting but gave up that pursuit as he became enamored with the theater and acting. Respectful of his father's wishes that the family name not be associated with acting, he chose his maternal grandmother's maiden name Palazzeschi as a pseudonym.
His family's comfortable circumstances enabled him to publish his first book of poetry, I cavalli bianchi (The White Horses) in 1905 using his acting pseudonym.
After meeting Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, he became a fervent Futurist. However, he was never entirely ideologically aligned with the movement and had a falling out with the group over Italy's involvement in World War I which he opposed, even though he did spend a brief period at the front lines after having been inducted into the military in 1916. His "futurist period" (roughly the 1910s) was a very fecund time in which he published a series of works that cemented his reputation. Most notable of these are his book of poems L'incendiario (The Arsonist) (1910) and the novel Il codice di Perelà (translated into English as Man of Smoke) (1911). Marinetti used to give away more copies of the Futurist books he published than those he sold, and Palazzeschi later recalled that in 1909, so many copies of one of his books were given away that even he failed to secure a copy.
During the interwar years, his poetical production decreased, as he became involved in journalism and other pursuits. He took no part in the official culture of the Fascist regime, but he found himself working in various magazines that did. Some of those were: Pegaso, Pan, and Il Selvaggio.
In the late sixties and early seventies he started publishing again, with a series of novels that resecured his place in the new, post-war avant-garde. He died in 1974 in his apartment in Rome.
Today he is often considered an important influence on later Italian writers, especially those of the neoavanguardia in both prose and verse. His work is well noted by its "grotesque and fantastic elements".
He was born in Florence to a well-off, bourgeois family. Following his father's direction he studied accounting but gave up that pursuit as he became enamored with the theater and acting. Respectful of his father's wishes that the family name not be associated with acting, he chose his maternal grandmother's maiden name Palazzeschi as a pseudonym.
His family's comfortable circumstances enabled him to publish his first book of poetry, I cavalli bianchi (The White Horses) in 1905 using his acting pseudonym.
After meeting Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, he became a fervent Futurist. However, he was never entirely ideologically aligned with the movement and had a falling out with the group over Italy's involvement in World War I which he opposed, even though he did spend a brief period at the front lines after having been inducted into the military in 1916. His "futurist period" (roughly the 1910s) was a very fecund time in which he published a series of works that cemented his reputation. Most notable of these are his book of poems L'incendiario (The Arsonist) (1910) and the novel Il codice di Perelà (translated into English as Man of Smoke) (1911). Marinetti used to give away more copies of the Futurist books he published than those he sold, and Palazzeschi later recalled that in 1909, so many copies of one of his books were given away that even he failed to secure a copy.
During the interwar years, his poetical production decreased, as he became involved in journalism and other pursuits. He took no part in the official culture of the Fascist regime, but he found himself working in various magazines that did. Some of those were: Pegaso, Pan, and Il Selvaggio.
In the late sixties and early seventies he started publishing again, with a series of novels that resecured his place in the new, post-war avant-garde. He died in 1974 in his apartment in Rome.
Today he is often considered an important influence on later Italian writers, especially those of the neoavanguardia in both prose and verse. His work is well noted by its "grotesque and fantastic elements".
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 3, 2023
I've read some excellent novels set in Rome over the last few years and while this did have some good moments - the descriptive passages of the city itself were impressive, it lacked the penetrating psychological insight when it came to his characters. ( Italian writer Alberto Moravia was someone who excelled in this department). The novel centres on Prince of Santo Stefano, who is nearing the end of his life, and that of his four children; two of his daughters being an abbess of a nunnery and an adulteress. I'm not sure about the translation, which is another reason I didn't connect with it all that well.
October 11, 2025
Un libro comprato in maniera impulsiva, come tanti della mia libreria (che pure aspettano ancora di essere aperti, letti) ma che mi ha conquistato senza troppe difficoltà. Leggere questi romanzi ambientati a Roma, che parlano di personaggi scomparsi (i nobili, gli assistenti al Soglio, i forieri), blasonati e irripetibili, mi aiuta a camminare meglio per questa città, che non è solo storia ma anche letteratura viva.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews