The Blue Flowers

Il mio giudizio complessivo sul romanzo e su Queneau in generale è senz’altro positivo! Sono rimasta invischiata nella staffetta onirica tra Auge e Cidrolin, e sono stata conquistata dalla genialità dello stile.
Grazie anche ovviamente alla splendida traduzione di Calvino.

http://www.naufragio.it/iltempodileggere/12901

Apparently (from the little article at the end), this is one of Queneau's favorites of his own work. I found it a little bland compared to his other stuff. However, it was quite funny with lots of wordplay (as usual), though I think I might have missed a lot of the puns and jokes due to translation. Probably much more entertaining in French (the title, for example, is some idiom in France). Nevertheless, this is probably a good introduction to Queneau, and is quite entertaining.

Apparently (from the little article at the end), this is one of Queneau's favorites of his own work. I found it a little bland compared to his other stuff. However, it was quite funny with lots of wordplay (as usual), though I think I might have missed a lot of the puns and jokes due to translation. Probably much more entertaining in French (the title, for example, is some idiom in France). Nevertheless, this is probably a good introduction to Queneau, and is quite entertaining.

Totally hilarious romp into the past the present the future dreams and wordplay! (not to mention ourselves...)

I found it very Calvinoesque, but not sure whether that's because the original is Calvinoesque or because Calvino put a lot of himself into the translation, or both.

On connaît le célèbre apologue chinois : Tchouang-tseu rêve qu'il est un papillon, mais n'est-ce point le papillon qui rêve qu'il est Tchouang-tseu ? De même dans ce roman, est-ce le duc d'Auge qui rêve qu'il est Cidrolin ou Cidrolin qui rêve qu'il est le duc d'Auge ?

unfinished

Fantasmagoria linguistica costruita su sfolgoranti giochi di parole, calembours e citazioni erudite, "I fiori blu" è la più imprevedibile e pirotecnica opera di Raymond Queneau: "Appena presi a leggere il romanzo - racconta Italo Calvino - pensai subito: E' intraducibile!... ma il libro cercava di coinvolgermi... mi tirava per il lembo della giacca, mi chiedeva di non abbandonarlo alla sua sorte, e nello stesso tempo mi lanciava una sfida".