Camilla Osemont
About:
Genoa, 1983. She writes, reads and sews in random order. The Story of Mr Vais marks her literary debut.
Storia del signor Vais : Novella / Camilla Osemont. – Minceto | Ge : Temposospeso, 2024. – 102 p. ; 19,5 cm. – (Temposospeso ; 8). – isbn 979-12-81467-12-5.
Why we propose to publish this book:
We think that this small novel is something rare, something unique. It seems a long thread slowly unraveled. A thread that you do not know where it takes you. It is a story that can be imagined anywhere, in a city with a narrow historic centre, by the water. Figures that seem to be strange but also familiar, somewhere. And a surprising end.
STORY OF MR VAIS
Short novel.
Abstract:
Story of Mr Vais, a text revised and polished by the author over many years, is a long tale, that, starting with an unexpected event, as surprising as a revelation, takes us inside the relationship between three residents living on three floors of the same apartment block, one above the other. We were won over by the literary and rhythmic precision of a story that is in some ways surreal, dense with unfinished business, long waits, withheld feelings and unspoken words, telling us of human frailty and the possibility of salvation, without rhetoric, told with a narrative thread as strong as twisted silk, now almost unattainable. A delicate and powerful book.
A look into the book:
‘He stood at the top of the ladder for an indefinite time, his body to one side and his ear pressed firmly against the ceiling, just as he had done then. He could remain motionless, stretched out and attentive, until he felt sore, his mouth dry, for even swallowing he could miss a precious word. He had trained himself to hear others more keenly, and he had grown up listening, taciturn, so that his ear could reveal words beyond words and reach the secret behind sterile prose. How often had he wanted to deceive himself, to surrender to the dream of a heart that offered him shelter, but he knew that if he reached out to take it, it would pass him by like a mirage.’ p.10