Abstract

The article provides an overview of Carlo Emilio Gadda’s personal library, investigating its development over time and its inner articulation. The books which were property of Gadda are now kept in four different archives (Rome, Villafranca di Verona, Florence, and Milan). On the basis of manuscript markings and of other elements, the article reflects on when Gadda might have acquired and read some of the books, also establishing new connections between the books and Gadda’s studies/work experiences. The article concludes that Gadda had a relation of «respectful distance» with the books he owned, with only some of them being considerably annotated and consumed. The article is concluded by a list which details 111 title of books which are known to have been part of Gadda’s collection until 1971 and yet are now missing.