Tim's Reviews > Rogomelec

Mostly know as a painter and a designer, Leonor Fini was a writer as well. All around she's a fascinating person to read about, but one doesn't often hear of her fiction? Why is that?


(Did I mention stylish?)

Well, I cannot fully say as I've only read Rogomelec. Perhaps there are more reasons beyond what I can see here... perhaps her fame in other areas made it more difficult for her writing to take off... maybe, just maybe, it her writing was a touch too weird even for the surrealists (that was a joke, I assure you).

To be honest, I don't know how to review this. I once described the film The Beyond as "less of a movie and more of watching someone else's fevered dream." That pretty much sums up this book as well. There is a plot... sort of, but it's more like the outline of a plot, to get us from one surreal event to the next.

Are the surreal moments interesting at least? I would certainly say so, but that is going to be very much an opinionated thing (as is much in terms of surrealist artwork). The book feels much like a classic Gothic in some ways, filled with broken cathedrals, weird inhabitants, and a constant feeling of unease. In many ways the surrealism adds to this aspect (after all, it's not like this is unheard of in the genre, The Castle of Otranto begins with a giant helmet falling on a young man on his wedding day!). This one certainly takes the concept and runs with it though.

I don't use this phrase often, but I don't really get this book... but I'm not really sure you're supposed to. I think this is one of those works that each person is going to have their own interpretation of, and they are all equally right and wrong.

From a design standpoint, I like the illustrations. I like keeping them in mind with the scene Fini is describing, though again, I don't know how to always interpret them. Sometimes I see more in the images when comparing it to what came the page before, other times they look straight forward enough until examined and thought about. Though the illustrations may seem simple at first, I do advise all potential readers to really examine them, the art and story are very much in conversation with each other.

Do I recommend this book? That may be the hardest part of this review... we'll leave it with the statement that I personally enjoyed it well enough, but would not advise for everyone. 3/5 stars