The Periodic Table by Primo Levi – Book club
100 years on, we examine the effect of Primo Levi’s masterpiece The Periodic Table
This time in our Book Club podcast, we celebrate the 100 year anniversary of Primo Levi, the man behind The Periodic Table. In this collection of short stories, the Italian author of If this is a man and If not now, when? offers a startling insight into both fascist Italy, and the harrowing events of the second world war.
Filtered through the unique perspective of Levi – a man held back and threatened at every turn by his Jewish heritage, but saved on many occasions by his expert understanding of chemical processes – even the most mundane or ordinary of every day events is given an authentic, scientific and sometimes disturbing twist. Instead of chapter names, each story – sometimes part of the overall narrative and other times a complete departure – is named after an element, sending the book off in different directions, before coming back to its central theme or reflecting on the poignancy of the moment.