Italo (1923-85), Italian writer. Born in Cuba, of Italian parents, Calvino moved to Italy in his youth. After World War II activity as a partisan in the Italian Resistance, he settled in Turin, where he earned his degree in literature. He was a realistic writer in his first novel, The Path to the Nest of Spiders (1947; trans. 1956). He then turned to techniques of a genre that became known as magic realism, characteristic of his allegorical novels The Nonexistent Knight & The Cloven Viscount (1952-59; trans. 1962). These and the later works Cosmicomics (1965; trans. 1968); If on a Winter's Night a Traveler (1979; trans. 1981); and Mr. Palomar (1983; trans. 1985) demonstrate Calvino's unique blend of fantasy, scientific curiosity, and metaphysical speculation.

Source: Encarta 1994

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