THE ANATOMIST

by Federico Andahazi ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 1998

This much-ballyhooed first novel from Argentina, which is set in a credibly realized 16th-century Venice, sets out to tell the story of physician Marco Colombo, a bold scientific adventurer (likened, overemphatically, to his namesake Christopher Columbus) who in the course of his researches ""discovers"" the clitoris--and is promptly imprisoned by outraged Church officials. Other potentially intriguing narrative elements--such as Marco's unobjective clinical interest in a locally notorious prostitute--are only briefly explored, in a redundant narrative that restates tediously the right of the scientist to seek truth, and neglects to offer the initially eager reader either a fully-rounded protagonist or a satisfactorily developed story.

Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1998

ISBN: 0385491336

Page Count: 256

Publisher: Doubleday

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1998

Categories: FICTION