Old Calabria

by Norman Douglas

Book Overview

First published in 1915, Old Calabria is a comprehensive and exciting account of adventure travel. Captivated by the pagan quality of the mezzogiorno, Norman Douglas plunged into Calabria, the southernmost and most backward part of Italy (a province that was still largely devoid of any form of modern amenity). He endured extremes of climate, scaled mountains, rode in carriages driven by villainous coachmen, and traversed remote stretches...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0810160226
• ISBN13: 9780810160224
• Release Date: December 1996
• Publisher: Marlboro Press
• Length: 325 Pages
• Weight: 5.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.3" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

An Excellent Read

This was a brilliant book and thoroughly enjoyable. At first I got it to look into the nature of the Calabrian people but soon realized it was the story of one man's interpretation of his own travels through Southern Italy in areas that may at one time have been part of Calabria. Interestingly San Giuseppe di Cupertino was mentioned in the book but he is from Le Marche, far north of Calabria if old. Still a witty and sarcastic endeavor that was fun to read.

Montaigne meets Nabokov

If you enjoy books by literary travellers, you will love this one. In it a humane sensibility reveals itself in clean, meticulous prose. This is not a book about Calabria but a book about Norman Douglas in Calabria, a much more interesting topic. Read Paul Fussell's excellent essay on Douglas, "Norman Douglas's Temporary Attachments" and you will understand. In Abroad: British Literary Traveling between the Wars