La casa de Piranesi no es un edificio cualquiera: sus habitaciones son monumentales, con paredes llenas de miles de estatuas, y sus pasillos, interminables. Dentro del dédalo de corredores hay un océano aprisionado en el que las olas retumban y las mareas inundan los aposentos. Pero Piranesi no tiene miedo: comprende las embestidas del mar igual que el patrón del laberinto, mientras explora los límites de su mundo y avanza, con la ayuda de un hombre llamado El Otro, en una investigación científica para alcanzar El Gran Conocimiento Secreto.
Content warning
Discussion of plot and reveal of mystery. Don't spoil it for yourself!
I enjoyed this. It's a short read. Felt like a good mystery novel? What I mean by paganism is by the way Piranesi himself resorts to the sort of ancient state that the antagonists of the novel desire. But I feel that this 'ancient state,' of nature/environment worship is idolized (ironically). Yet even in the midst of his Pagan consciousness, Piranesi analyzes things in the scientific tradition by cataloguing the labyrinth and his journals (hence scientific paganism).
If you have learned anything about ancient history, I think it is hard to come to the conclusion that Pagan worship and rituals are the coolest thing about ancient people (child sacrifice and self mutilation guys!). This isn't really a review of the novel or the writing (which are good), but the subtext. I was not as immersed as I wanted to be. Though the House itself stuck in my mind, I wanted more from the ending. Also I might have just missed this, but is leaving the Labyrinth really as easy as walking through the door in the First Vestibule? In that case, couldn't Piranesi have left before the book even started? Anyway. I did enjoy it, but it didn't change my life. The presentation was creative.
Pas facile de vous faire le pitch sans trop en dire… c’est un roman très atypique et je vous voudrais pas vous en dévoiler trop. Je vais tâcher de me contenter de planter le décor puis de vous laisser, si vous le souhaitez, découvrir la suite par vous-même.
Piranèse, c’est le nom du héros de notre roman. Il vit de pêche et de débrouille, tel Robinson sur son île… sauf que Piranèse n’est pas sur une île mais dans un immense palais. Monumental. Et infini. Ou, en tout cas, Piranèse ne lui en connait pas de fin, et il ne semble rien connaître d’extérieur au Palais. Il sait juste que, de certains salles, on peut contempler le ciel et les étoiles. Malgré son immensité et sa complexité, Piranèse connait le Palais comme sa poche, à force de l’avoir silloné. Les salles sont immenses, peuplées de gigantesques sculptures, reliées par …
Pas facile de vous faire le pitch sans trop en dire… c’est un roman très atypique et je vous voudrais pas vous en dévoiler trop. Je vais tâcher de me contenter de planter le décor puis de vous laisser, si vous le souhaitez, découvrir la suite par vous-même.
Piranèse, c’est le nom du héros de notre roman. Il vit de pêche et de débrouille, tel Robinson sur son île… sauf que Piranèse n’est pas sur une île mais dans un immense palais. Monumental. Et infini. Ou, en tout cas, Piranèse ne lui en connait pas de fin, et il ne semble rien connaître d’extérieur au Palais. Il sait juste que, de certains salles, on peut contempler le ciel et les étoiles. Malgré son immensité et sa complexité, Piranèse connait le Palais comme sa poche, à force de l’avoir silloné. Les salles sont immenses, peuplées de gigantesques sculptures, reliées par des couloirs et des escaliers monumentaux. Et puis… il y a l’océan aussi, et ses marées qui pourraient être dangereuses s’il ne les connaissait pas si bien.
Piranèse n’est pas seul dans ce Palais. Il y a trouvé treize dépouilles, qu’il a nommé selon l’endroit et la façon dont il les a découvertes et dont il prend grand soin. Et puis, il y a « l’Autre ». Autant Piranèse est un naufragé, aux vêtements défraichis et raccommodés, autant l’autre est un explorateur, élégant et soigné. Piranèse ne le rencontre que deux jours par semaine, pour des entretiens de quelques heures tout au plus. Il essaie de l’aider dans ses travaux, des expériences qui semblent très importantes, en quête du « Grand savoir ».
Que cherche « l’Autre » ? Où est-t-il quand il n’est pas au Palais ? D’ailleurs, y a-t-il autre chose que la Palais dans ce Monde ? Et d’autres habitants ?
C’est très particulier (je le classerais volontiers dans les OLNI). Il n’y a que très peu d’action… et pourtant le suspens est là et c’est un page-turner. Piranèse est plus qu’un roman, c’est une découverte, un voyage onirique et poétique… mais c’est aussi une intrigue captivante et une histoire envoutante.
En primer lugar, debo decir que leer a cualquiera de las ganadoras del Women's Prize for Fiction siempre es una excelente idea.
Piranesi es una novela breve, pero que alberga muchas historias en sí misma: desde la encantadora vida del protagonista en su Casa-Mundo hasta los secretos del Mundo más allá de ella. Quizá la historia pierde un poco de impacto con todas las pistas que la autora incluye en la misma, empezando por el título, pero se presta a tantas reflexiones que igual me merece 5 estrellas.
"La Hermosura de la Casa es inconmesurable; su Bondad, infinita."
En primer lugar, debo decir que leer a cualquiera de las ganadoras del Women's Prize for Fiction siempre es una excelente idea.
Piranesi es una novela breve, pero que alberga muchas historias en sí misma: desde la encantadora vida del protagonista en su Casa-Mundo hasta los secretos del Mundo más allá de ella. Quizá la historia pierde un poco de impacto con todas las pistas que la autora incluye en la misma, empezando por el título, pero se presta a tantas reflexiones que igual me merece 5 estrellas.
"La Hermosura de la Casa es inconmesurable; su Bondad, infinita."
I've been excited by Susanna Clarke's writing since I first picked up Jonathan Strange, and when I first heard this book was coming out, I was suddenly aware that I hadn't heard about her in a long while! Some Googling revealed that she'd been suffering from severe health issues for years now, and this book was the result of more years of hardship than I could fathom. I preordered it immediately, and read it the moment it arrived.
Wow. So different, so quiet, and so, so good.
I've read plenty of reviews that disparage the book (usually because they felt the plot was thin or easily deduced, or because the narration was too simple or unrelatable), but I enjoyed the hell out of it. I was surprised when reveals came, I was drawn into the narration and worldbuilding, and I found the narrator endearing, if a bit alien …
I've been excited by Susanna Clarke's writing since I first picked up Jonathan Strange, and when I first heard this book was coming out, I was suddenly aware that I hadn't heard about her in a long while! Some Googling revealed that she'd been suffering from severe health issues for years now, and this book was the result of more years of hardship than I could fathom. I preordered it immediately, and read it the moment it arrived.
Wow. So different, so quiet, and so, so good.
I've read plenty of reviews that disparage the book (usually because they felt the plot was thin or easily deduced, or because the narration was too simple or unrelatable), but I enjoyed the hell out of it. I was surprised when reveals came, I was drawn into the narration and worldbuilding, and I found the narrator endearing, if a bit alien in perspective. It even holds up to rereads!
All told, I found it delightful, and hopefully you will/have too!
I didn't know what to expect coming into this and I firmly recommend trying to go in with as little knowledge as you possibly can. The unfolding that occurs throughout the narrative was the payoff, the end just another event along a wave of experience.
A library book that has inevitably made it to my own collection, amongst the shelf of favorites that are destined to be reread over and over again.
I didn't know what to expect coming into this and I firmly recommend trying to go in with as little knowledge as you possibly can. The unfolding that occurs throughout the narrative was the payoff, the end just another event along a wave of experience.
A library book that has inevitably made it to my own collection, amongst the shelf of favorites that are destined to be reread over and over again.
This is one of those books that's unlike any other. It's surreal and dreamy and the sheer "what the heck's going on?" factor compelled me to read it all in one day.
A novel like this - light on plot, with an extremely limited cast of characters, told in an epistolary style - really sinks or swims on the narrative voice. Luckily the titular Piranesi is fun to read, and comes across as practical and clever, curious and sweet. His ignorance is charming rather than frustrating, and of course his naivete is all part of the mystery.
Highly recommended to anyone who loves an atmospheric and/or experimental story.
This is one of those books that's unlike any other. It's surreal and dreamy and the sheer "what the heck's going on?" factor compelled me to read it all in one day.
A novel like this - light on plot, with an extremely limited cast of characters, told in an epistolary style - really sinks or swims on the narrative voice. Luckily the titular Piranesi is fun to read, and comes across as practical and clever, curious and sweet. His ignorance is charming rather than frustrating, and of course his naivete is all part of the mystery.
Highly recommended to anyone who loves an atmospheric and/or experimental story.
Al principio no sabía muy bien dónde me había metido y estaba un poco perdida, pero enseguida me ha enganchado. En cuanto estás apunto de aburrirte, pasan cosas y te enganchas más. La segunda mitad no podía dejarlo.
I really enjoyed the book, the smaller world that the protagonist lives in is very simple and is intriguing, but not somewhere I feel I need to return to. The larger universe though is interesting, with its reality plus a little magic vibe. I enjoyed the unravelling mystery and it compelled me to read it much faster than I've read books of similar size. The first few chapters describing the House reminded me of the descriptions of The Sleeper Service in Iain M Banks' book Excession. To the point where I thought the book was going to go in a sci-fi direction.
I really enjoyed the book, the smaller world that the protagonist lives in is very simple and is intriguing, but not somewhere I feel I need to return to. The larger universe though is interesting, with its reality plus a little magic vibe.
I enjoyed the unravelling mystery and it compelled me to read it much faster than I've read books of similar size.
The first few chapters describing the House reminded me of the descriptions of The Sleeper Service in Iain M Banks' book Excession. To the point where I thought the book was going to go in a sci-fi direction.
I found this book a bit slow for the first 50–60 pages, which are spent mostly describing the World without much of any sort of Plot happening. It only really begins to pick up around Part 3, when the mystery inherent to the setting starts to unravel, all through the eyes of a narrator not so much unreliable as naïve and lacking in knowledge, which makes him unable to understand things which are clear to the reader. It's the sort of book where it's worth reading (or at least skimming) the first few parts again to see what you missed the first read through.
I found this book a bit slow for the first 50–60 pages, which are spent mostly describing the World without much of any sort of Plot happening. It only really begins to pick up around Part 3, when the mystery inherent to the setting starts to unravel, all through the eyes of a narrator not so much unreliable as naïve and lacking in knowledge, which makes him unable to understand things which are clear to the reader. It's the sort of book where it's worth reading (or at least skimming) the first few parts again to see what you missed the first read through.
If we were born in another world what form would the shadows cast upon the walls of our cave take? What mythologies and art would inform our identity? What are the limits that malicious people have to do harm through warping and confining our realities? How does the society around me shape the person I am at any given time?
Piranesi explores these questions in a labyrinth of an endless house full of statues that is flooded by the sea. The answers are in the faces of our neighbors and in the hushing pose of the faun.
