Book #76

Love that moves the sun and other stars by Dante

A collection of cantos from Paradiso, the most original and experimental part of the Divina Commedia.

I thought this would ease me gently into Dante, and instead it has me running in the opposite direction.

My feelings are very strong on the fact that this simply is not my thing. My brain can’t seem to work to the levels needed to comprehend this, even merely to follow along, and all I did throughout was marvel at the beautiful writing, without a clue in the world as to what was going on, or what was being conveyed.

Despite self-proclaimed stupidity being to blame here, I also feel Penguin should have done more to help their readers. A selection of cantos from the work does not make a clever introduction; it’s too sporadic and confusing to simpletons such as myself. It seems very much shoehorned into the collection after someone in a meeting room said, “need some Dante.”