In the half-century following Pavese's death, much that was written about him sought principally to understand and define his complex character, and to determine his place within the twentieth-century Italian literary canon. Latterly, there appears to have been a significant shift in focus towards a closer reading of individual works or aspects or periods of his writing, the better to analyse and reveal the subtleties and depth of his vision. This present collection of ten essays conforms broadly with this tendency. It is organised chronologically with regard to Pavese's life and works so as to convey a sense of the development of a writer, over and above the particular concerns of any given essay. The book features contributions from many leading experts on Pavese.

This second volume of Italian Short Stories, with its parallel translations aims - as the first volume did - to exemplify the richness and variety of Italian writing of the twentieth century. In this volume, however, some of the language used is a little more advanced and the translations slightly less literal. Moravia and Calvino, both well known to British and American readers, appear again along with Italo Svevo, Comisso, Vittorini, Rigoni - Stern, Fenoglio and Pasolini so that the literature of both Rome and the provinces is fully represented. There are also discussions of the less familiar words and dialect expressions in the Italian text.

This collection brings together a variety of critical perspectives on Ginzburg's work for an English-speaking audience. What emerges is a nuanced and complex portrait of Ginzburg and her work.