This volume provides a broad ranging introduction to the development of the Italian novel, novelists examined include Eco and Calvino.The Cambridge Companion to the Italian Novel provides a broad-ranging introduction to the major trends in the development of the Italian novel from its early modern origin to the contemporary era. Novelists examined include some of the most influential and important of the twentieth century inside and outside Italy: Luigi Pirandello, Primo Levi, Umberto Eco and Italo Calvino. Readers will gain a keen sense of the vitality of the Italian novel throughout its history and a clear picture of the debates and criticism that have surrounded its development.The Cambridge Companion to the Italian Novel provides a broad-ranging introduction to the major trends in the development of the Italian novel from its early modern origin to the contemporary era. Novelists examined include some of the most influential and important of the twentieth century inside and outside Italy: Luigi Pirandello, Primo Levi, Umberto Eco and Italo Calvino. Readers will gain a keen sense of the vitality of the Italian novel throughout its history and a clear picture of the debates and criticism that have surrounded its development.This study provides a broad-ranging introduction to the major trends in the development of the Italian novel from its early modern origins to the contemporary era. It examines some of the most influential and important novelists of the twentieth century, such as Luigi Pirandello, Primo Levi, Umberto Eco and Italo Calvino. Readers will be exposed to the vitality of the Italian novel throughout its history, in addition to learning about the debates and criticism that have contributed to its development.Chronology; Introduction; 1. The belated development of a theory of the novel in Italian literary culture Remo Cesarini and Pierluigi Pellini; 2. The forms of long prose fiction in late medieval and early modern Italian literature Albert N. Mancinil“'