The Tartar Steppe by Dino Buzzati

The Tartar Steppe by Dino Buzzati

Often likened to Kafka's The Castle, The Tartar Steppe is both a scathing critique of military life and a meditation on the human thirst for glory. It tells of young Giovanni Drogo, who is posted to a distant fort overlooking the vast Tartar steppe. Although not intending to stay, Giovanni suddenly finds that years have passed, as, almost without his noticing, he has come to share the others' wait for a foreign invasion that never happens. Over time the fort is downgraded and Giovanni's ambitions fade - until the day the enemy begins massing on the desolate steppe.

Often likened to Kafka's The Castle, The Tartar Steppe is both a scathing critique of military life and a meditation on the human thirst for glory. It tells of young Giovanni Drogo, who is posted to a distant fort overlooking the vast Tartar steppe. Although not intending to stay, Giovanni suddenly finds that years have passed, as, almost without his noticing, he has come to share the others' wait for a foreign invasion that never happens. Over time the fort is downgraded and Giovanni's ambitions fade - until the day the enemy begins massing on the desolate steppe.

Dino Buzzati (1906-1972) came from a distinguished family that had long been resident in the northern Italian region of the Veneto. His mother was a veterinarian; his father, a professor of international law. Buzzati studied law at the University of Milan and, at the age of twenty-two, went to work for Corriere della Sera, where he remained for the rest of his life. He served in World War II as a journalist connected to the Italian navy and on his return published the book for which he is most famous, The Tartar Steppe. A gifted artist as well as writer, Buzzati was the author offive novels and numerous short stories, as well as books for children, including The Bears' Famous Invasion of Sicily (published in The New York Review Children's Collection).

Marina Harss is a translator and dance writer living in New York City. Her recent translations include Mariolina Venezia's Been Here a Thousand Years, Alberto Moravia's Conjugal Love, and Pier Paolo Pasolini's Stories from the City of God.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781567923049
ISBN 10	1567923046
Title	The Tartar Steppe
Author	Dino Buzzati
Series	Verba Mundi Book
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	David R. Godine Publisher Inc
Year published	2005-11-01
Number of pages	198
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
Note	Unavailable