The Celestial Hunter
Published on 28. April 2020
Book
Hardback
464 pages
978-0-241-29674-5 (ISBN)
Description
Fascinating ... beguiling ... Calasso is vital - Stuart Jeffries, Guardian
There was a time when, upon encountering other beings, it was not certain whether they were animals or gods or lords of a certain species, demons or ancestors. Or simply humans. One day, which lasted many thousands of years, humans did something that no other species had yet tried, we began to imitate those same animals that persecuted us: the predators. And we became the hunter.
In this new book, Roberto Calasso takes the reader on an unforgettable journey through centuries and across cultures - from the Paleolithic era to Turing's Machine - weaving together stories of gods, animals and humans in an extraordinary tale of transformation.
He writes like a poet, not a professor, in glinting, enigmatic nuggets of narrative - Boyd Tonkin, Financial Times
There was a time when, upon encountering other beings, it was not certain whether they were animals or gods or lords of a certain species, demons or ancestors. Or simply humans. One day, which lasted many thousands of years, humans did something that no other species had yet tried, we began to imitate those same animals that persecuted us: the predators. And we became the hunter.
In this new book, Roberto Calasso takes the reader on an unforgettable journey through centuries and across cultures - from the Paleolithic era to Turing's Machine - weaving together stories of gods, animals and humans in an extraordinary tale of transformation.
He writes like a poet, not a professor, in glinting, enigmatic nuggets of narrative - Boyd Tonkin, Financial Times
Reviews / Votes
Beguiling, captivating, vital ... Informed by myth, this damning exploration of man's detachment from the animal world is ninth in a staggeringly learned series -- Stuart Jeffries * Guardian * The Celestial Hunter is an "initiation through the book", speculative but capable of changing how you see things -- Dominic Green * Spectator * A spellbinding modern magus . . . he writes like a poet, not a professor, in glinting, enigmatic nuggets of narrative. At a moment when atavistic kinds of peril, awe and terror seem close at hand, it feels no great stretch to share Calasso's core belief that "the gods always return" -- Boyd Tonkin * Financial Times * Calasso is especially good at describing the characters of myth and legend with a novelist's omniscient authority ... leaves you feeling not out of your depth, but smarter and better read -- A. E. Stallings * New York Times *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Penguin Books Ltd
Target group
Professional and scholarly
College/higher education
Dimensions
Height: 240 mm
Width: 162 mm
Thickness: 41 mm
Weight
704 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-241-29674-5 (9780241296745)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Roberto Calasso
The Celestial Hunter
E-Book
04/2020
1st Edition
Penguin Books Ltd
€11.99
Available for download
Person
Roberto Calasso is the author of an ongoing series of books which began with The Ruin of Kasch and includes the international bestseller The Marriage of Cadmus and Harmony, Ka, K., Tiepolo Pink, La Folie Baudelaire, Ardor, The Celestial Hunter and The Unnamable Present. He lives in Milan.