The Celestial Hunter: Roberto Calasso Paperback – 29 April 2021

Excellent book , I think this is my favourite by Calasso, at least it's the only one I've read twice!

I'm always fascinated by Roberto Calasso's books as they are a mix of good storytelling, sound knowledge and you cannot help wondering how great his erudition is.This book is no exception and I was enthralled and involved in this book full of great story, interesting reflections and food for thought.It was an excellent read and I strongly recommend it.Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

If you've read Calasso's 'The Marriage of Cadmus and Harmony' then you'll have an inkling of what to expect: once again, Calasso delves into primarily, though not exclusively, Greek storytelling through myth but also through the Mysteries that were cults and kind of adjacent to religion. The theme that only partially holds all this together is that of the porous boundaries between the divine, the human and the animal; and hunting is the process that both defines and yet confuses these categorisations.Going beyond the expected (such as Actaeon, the archetypal hunter turned prey), this is a dazzling meditation that is dense, hallucinogenic, suggestive - and occasionally bonkers! Calasso's breadth of scholarship is kaleidoscopic as he zooms from Homer, the classical Athenians to Burkhardt and Nietzsche and beyond (and you've got to love someone who has clearly reads the extant fragments of Callimachus!) but don't expect linearity or a composed precision - this is all flight and imagination that touches base on a topic before soaring off again...So another fascinating, amorphous, unpindownable text - it's exhilarating, erudite and stimulating, but kind of crazy too!

Tried with this after reading the reviews but gave up after two chapters of unfocussed rubbish.I'd advise anyone thinking of reading this to get a sample through a kindle and see what they think.Personally I feel it was a waste of time.

I'd love to read this book one day - seems intriging - I haven't read this yet as it was a gift for my parents.

Late twentieth century America saw an explosion of interest in mythology. George Lucas, inspired by his reading of Joseph Campbell, fashioned a space opera based on common mythological themes that went on to earn him billions. Earlier, a relatively unknown Oxford don created an imagined world that he thought could serve as a propaedeutic for the acceptance of Christianity. While it may have led to some converts, it was surprisingly adopted by the Hippie movement of the 60s to the point where “Bilbo lives” was found in graffiti from London to New York.Unlike these creators, Roberto Calasso chose a different path. Sharing the insight that modern man needed a deeper experience with myth, he chose to explore how ancient mythology continues to shape and influence modern culture. His books explore myths on their own terms—not rewritten for a modern audience. Then he shows have they have been transformed in artists like Baudelaire, Musil or Kafka.The Celestial Hunter volume deals mostly with the primordial myth of man as predator. Given the existence of cave paintings depicting the hunt drawn before the immigration of man to the Americas, he hypothesizes a common origin between Greek and Native American notions of the hunter. He draws a genealogical connection between hunting, sacrifice and libations. He also presents the literature showing the analogies between hunting and obvious parallels like war to obscure ones like the act of knowledge. Underlying all these rituals associated with hunting is the pervasive sense of guilt in taking another creature’s life.Calasso, of course, goes into much more depth. How couldn’t he by choosing to become learned in the diverse world mythologies and then explaining their meaning in their own time as well as their contemporary underpinning of modern culture? I only wish he would have received more recognition. Surely, his work was in some ways even more important than creating popular versions of these myths. Here is to hoping that the twenty first century will begin to recognize the gift Roberto Calasso has left to the world in these scholarly, yet always interesting texts.

Roberto weaves his mythomagic..... as expected. But, too many references in the text dam the flow at times. Each chapter heading must be consulted to determine the context of what follows thereunder. Erudite but not as poetic as other books of this series. Yet, a must read.

Calasso fornisce al lettore un ottimo modello del rapporto tra uomini e divinità nel mondo latino e greco. Molto interessante è la discussione della poesia erotica di Ovidio, come della filosofia di Platone. E' soprattutto in base alle opere di questi 2 autori che Calasso segue un filo logico che ci permette di capire come gli dei abbiano abbandonato l'uomo al suo libero arbitrio, in modo che potesse disporre delle cose secondo le sue responsabilità.

I have read several of Calasso's books, so I'm sure it will be great.However, the book I received had the back cover folded (during the packing process I would guess).

Love his books