Armchair Escapism 16

Books
Italian Folktales, Italo Calvino

Calvino is widely considered one of Italy’s greatest and most important writers. Italian Folktales is a vibrant collection of 200 traditional stories gathered by Calvino from the varying regions across Italy. His goal with this mammoth task was twofold: to preserve all manners of Italian folktales, translating them from their original dialects, and to represent all the regions of Italy through their stories, passed down orally through the centuries. Each tale is just a few pages long and recounted with humour, elegance, style and wit. We experience themes of justice, love, trickery and cunning through tales featuring kings, peasants, princes, paupers, witches, and mythical creatures. The result is a rich, whimsical portrait of Italian folklore that feels timeless, playful, and deeply human.

92 Acharnon Street, John Lucas

'Somewhere in the world there may be a noisier street than Acharnon Street; but I hope not.’ John Lucas, a British poet and writer, spent part of the 1980s in a city of riveting contrasts: Athens. The result is a vivid and loving account of his daily life in conjunction with the city’s own rhythms and the people within it. The grit of Athens lives side by side with the grandeur and Lucas delves into its thousands-year old history alongside its present day curiosities. Blending personal narrative with cultural commentary, he reflects on history, friendship, exile, and the lingering shadows of dictatorship. The book offers an intimate, affectionate portrait of a changing Greece, revealing how place shapes identity and how small encounters can illuminate a society’s character.

Chantemesle, Robin Fedden 

Fedden takes us to Chantemesle on the banks of the River Seine which burst with natural beauty through the dewey-eyed perspective of a curious child but with the rich, poetic brilliance of a gifted adult writer. His memoir recounts his early life in France which goes into painstaking detail on the atmosphere of his home: dappled light, buzzing wildlife, village rituals…we are transported to a seemingly idyllic pastoral life through Fedden’s evocative prose. The turning point arrives as Fedden comes to terms with his emerging sexuality which changes his relationship to Chantemesle. It becomes a symbol for the nostalgia of childhood and an existence that, for better or worse, cannot last forever.

Films
Vermiglio

Cesare, the local schoolteacher from Vermiglio, a remote Italian village in the Alps, has his life turned upside down with the arrival of a Sicilian soldier, Pietro. The year is 1944 and Pietro has deserted the army in the final year of the Second World War. He seeks refuge and the villagers take him in but almost immediately, their precious ecosystem is disrupted. Cesare’s eldest daughter, Lucia, falls in love with Pietro but their course does not run smooth. Secrets and unexpected reckonings come to the fore. Vermiglio is shot against the spectacular backdrop of snowcapped mountains, pristine hillsides, and dramatic landscapes serving as the perfect visual counter to the story’s drama which rapidly unfolds.

Scarlet

A powerful film blending magic realism with real magic. War veteran and widower, Raphaël moves to rustic Normandy with his little daughter, Juliette. As she blossoms into a beautiful young woman, Juliette dreams of another life far away from her current pastoral existence. She meets a witch who tells her that one day, scarlet-coloured sails will carry her to her future but Juliette’s mindset begins to shift with the sudden arrival of Jean, a mysterious pilot. As the two youths fall in love, will Juliette still dream of far away adventures? Scarlet is shot with a mastery and a poetry, that makes the audience themselves wish to escape to hidden depths of rural France.

Blancanieves

You will not have ever experienced a film similar to this. Released in 2012, Blancanieves is a silent, black and white retelling of the classic fairytale, Snow White. Set in 1920s Spain, Carmencita is the beautiful daughter of a beloved bullfighter who is paralysed from a freak accident. So Carmencita is raised by Encarna, her wicked stepmother but she eventually escapes her unhappy home life to join a troupe of travelling dwarf bullfighters. Soon, it is clear that she possesses her own talents in the bullfighting ring. As Carmencita rises to fame, Encarna is determined to orchestrate her stepdaughter’s downfall. The film is visually astounding, theatrical, heart-wrenching and an ingenious portrayal of a fairytale we all know, shot with a love and celebration for Spanish culture.