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Invisible Cities

3.7(9)
Paperback€13.00
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About the book

Fifty-five fictional cities, each described in beautiful detail - each with a woman's name...

In Invisible Cities Marco Polo conjures up cities of magical times for his host, the Chinese ruler Kublai Khan, but gradually it becomes clear that he is actually describing one city: Venice. As Gore Vidal wrote 'Of all tasks, describing the contents of a book is the most difficult and in the case of a marvellous invention like Invisible Cities, perfectly irrelevant.'

This is a captivating meditation on culture, language, time, memory and the nature of human experience.

'Invisible Cities changed the way we read and what is possible in the balance between poetry and prose... The book I would choose as pillow and plate, alone on a desert island' Jeanette Winterson

'Touches inexhaustibly on the essence of the human urge to create cities, be in cities, speak of cities' Guardian

'A subtle and beautiful meditation' Sunday Times

Editions (2)

ISBN9780099429838
PublisherBantam
Publication Date10/02/97
Pages160

Reviews & Ratings

9 ratings

4 reviews

3.7

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  • 1001books.and.more
    1001books.and.more

    88 Followers

    5.0

    When I started reading this little book I wasn't too impressed. But the more city descriptions I perused and the more I learned about Marco Polo's and Kublai Khan's conversation, the better I liked it. I believe this is one of these rare works which disclose even more and new sides when you read them again. I can imagine art and literature teachers going crazy over this book and making their students illustrate the cities and draw connections between them. There is so much room for interpretation!

    Sep 23, 2022

  • 4.0

    Beautiful ideas, very inspirational.

    Jul 21, 2025

  • 4.0

    give a push to your imagination...

    Dec 7, 2025

3 of 4 reviews

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