Ricci's book ranges widely over Calvino's oeuvre to illustrate the accuracy of the idea articulated by Calvino himself that a visual image lies at the origin of all his narrative. The book's main theme is the difficult interface between word and image that Calvino struggled with throughout his career, the act of perception that rendered visible that which was invisible and transformed what was seen into what is read. Ricci holds that Calvino's narrative has an 'imagocentric' program and that his literary strategy is 'ekphrastic' i.e. it is characterized by literary description of visual representation, real or imaginary. The book is interdisciplinary in nature and will interest not only scholars of literature but also those who work with the visual arts and with information technology.

Franco Ricci teaches in the Department of Modern Languages and Literature at the University of Ottawa. Specializing in contemporary Italian literature, he has published numerous articles on Italo Calvino. He is the editor of the book Calvino Revisited.

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• Winner, Howard R Marraro Prize, Modern Language Association