Alcina and Other Stories

The Turin born Guido Gozzano was the first and finest representative of the Crepuscolari, the poets of the twilight. Before his tragically early death from consumption at the age of thirty-five he produced two short volumes of verse, La via del rifugio and I colloqui, which quickly became renown for their quietly perfect evocations of nature, melancholy, tenderness and ­nostalgia. But unknown to most, Gozzano also wrote short stories, contes cruels influenced by Poe and Maupassant, and aest...