Carlo Cassola, (b. March
17, 1917, Rome, Italy—d. Jan. 29, 1987, Monte Carlo,
Monaco), Italian Neorealist novelist who portrayed the
landscapes and the ordinary people of rural Tuscany in
simple prose. The lack of action and the emphasis on detail
in his books caused him to be regarded as a forerunner of
the French nouveau roman, or antinovel.
After studying at the
University of Rome, Cassola fought with the Resistance
during World War II. The period formed the background of
some of his best-known works, among them the short-story
collection Il taglio del bosco (1955; “Timber Cutting”) and
the novel Fausto e Anna (1952; Fausto and Anna), both
semiautobiographical. In 1960 Cassola won the Strega Prize
for La ragazza di Bube (Bebo’s Girl; film, 1964). These
austere novels portray with sympathy and restraint
individuals—especially women—whose lives are bleak and
unfulfilled. Cassola’s later concern with the environment
and the threat of nuclear war was reflected in essays and in
the novel Il paradiso degli animali (1979; “Animals’
Paradise”).
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