Mario Vargas Llosa's novel 'I Venti' explores memory and protest in Madrid
Nobel laureate Mario Vargas Llosa has published a new novel titled 'I Venti' (Einaudi, 2025). The story follows an elderly protagonist suffering from memory loss who attends a protest against the closure of the Ideal cinema in Madrid. Through his journey home, the character reflects on generational change, contrasting past youth rebellions focused on equality, free love, feminism, and euthanasia with contemporary activism centered on veganism. The novel uses the metaphor of wind to represent emotional turmoil and the search for home. The article is a review by Antonia De Francesco for MIfacciodiCultura, published on Artspecialday.
Key facts
- Mario Vargas Llosa is a Nobel Prize winner in Literature.
- The novel 'I Venti' was published by Einaudi in 2025.
- The protagonist is an elderly man with memory loss.
- He attends a protest against the closure of the Ideal cinema in Madrid.
- The novel contrasts past and present youth activism.
- The review was written by Antonia De Francesco.
- The article appears on Artspecialday.
- The review references Led Zeppelin's 'Stairway to Heaven'.
Entities
Artists
- Mario Vargas Llosa
- Antonia De Francesco
Institutions
- Einaudi
- MIfacciodiCultura
- Artspecialday
- Ideal cinema
Locations
- Madrid
- Spain