Pretty decent telling of Keats' last days in Rome.
Not sure Part II, a translation of Belli's poems, was either warranted or enjoyable. ( )

This a two-part novella. The first tells of a last days of John Keats in Rome, centered around a fictitious meeting with the Roman dialect poet Belli. The second part, more of an appendix, is a set of Belli’s poems, with the framing device of an introduction by the supposed translator Wilson. It is filled with enormously witty wordplay, deep references to the form and history of the sonnet, and that period in Romantic literature. Most of them went well above my head but I still caught enough to find this an fascinating and enjoyable book. Having read nearly twenty novels by Anthony Burgess, although none in the last fifteen years, this made me hungry for more of them. Maybe re-reading Enderby should be next on my list. ( )

Burgess has, in Abba Abba, created a very witty, erudite little book based on the possibility that John Keats may have met up with fellow poet Belli while in Rome. At first sight it may seem hard going, but bear with it – your hard work will pay rich dividends! Although peppered with odd comments in Italian, French and Latin these are either explained or it is obvious from context what they mean. Keats and Belli come through as rounded, thoroughly likeable characters, despite the obligatory artistic temperaments and eccentricities.
The book is split into two parts. The first part deals with Keats meeting Belli in Rome. Keats is slowly dying of consumption and is desperately trying to write his last great poem. Belli has written a sonnet of which he is ashamed, it being an exposition on the male organ (think Monty Python for the 19th century). Keats obtained a copy of this poem through their mutual friend Giuielmi who had kept back his translation, unbeknownst to Belli. Burgess deals with this conflict very well (Belli has an inner conflict too, as he is quite pious and cannot really deal with his more base nature). Indeed conflict permeates this section of the novella – for Keats is virulently anti-Christian and God, much to the chagrin of his companion, Severn. He also argues often with his doctor, who insists on restricting him to a light diet with no alcohol and that he compliment this diet with rest and calm deportment.

The descriptions of Rome are understated, but beautiful. All the characters are rounded. The word play is just amazing. It is clear that Anthony Burgess is a very clever man, and he has researched his background thoroughly and well. This is also evidenced by the title of the book which refers both to the structure of the first 8 lines of a sonnet, and to the name by which Jesus referred to God (it is Aramaic for Daddy). He therefore manages to incorporate both poetry and religion into the title, just as in his novel. In the second part of the book he presents some translations of Belli’s work which had been produced by John Wilson, a 19th century Mancunian who had become very interested in Belli’s poetry. Some of the sonnets, therefore, have dialect in them, and are all the more enriched for it.

At only 120 pages or so, this really is a little gem. So, if you fancy a compelling and interesting historical novel with literary references that will make you think, then this is the book for you. ( )

This a two-part novella. The first tells of a last days of John Keats in Rome, centered around a fictitious meeting with the Roman dialect poet Belli. The second part, more of an appendix, is a set of Belli‰ÃƒÂ›Ã‚ªs poems, with the framing device of an introduction by the supposed translator Wilson. It is filled with enormously witty wordplay, deep references to the form and history of the sonnet, and that period in Romantic literature. Most of them went well above my head but I still caught enough to find this an fascinating and enjoyable book. Having read nearly twenty novels by Anthony Burgess, although none in the last fifteen years, this made me hungry for more of them. Maybe re-reading Enderby should be next on my list. ( )