Publisher, Recorded Books (June 2005)

NOTE: RETAIL EDITIONS are packaged in attractive, compact cardboard, jewel-case or DVD shrink-wrapped cases, with full-color art.

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"Brilliantly written and gorgeously illustrated . . . As we accompany Yambo on his trail of self-discovery, we see Umberto Eco, one of the great minds of our era, reveal a little of his heart." --Chicago Sun-Times

"Eco . . . leaves the reader charmed . . . [His] latest feat of imagination burns with humane intelligence." --Philadelphia Inquirer

What if you woke up tomorrow and remembered nothing of your life? The faces of your spouse and children are strange, and the outlines of your childhood are only a blur. This is the crisis that Yambo, an Italian bookseller, faces when he regains consciousness after suffering a stroke. He is shocked to find, however, that he can remember every book he has ever read, every line of poetry, and a wealth of literary quotations.

Desperate to retrieve his past, he searches through boxes of old newspapers, comics, records, photo albums, and adolescent diaries. And so Yambo relives the story of his generation: Mussolini, Catholic education and guilt, Josephine Baker, Flash Gordon, Fred Astaire. His memories run wild, and life races before him in a series of images, as Yambo struggles to capture the most elusive one—that of his first love.

"Eco continues to write some of the most timeless and consistently engaging fiction out there." --Miami Herald

Internationally best-selling author Umberto Eco is a master stylist whose books, including Baudolino, have been savored by millions around the world. Now, with The Mysterious Flame of Queen Loana, he crafts another ambitious and breathtaking novel. When book dealer Yambo suffers amnesia, his only remaining memories are books, poems, songs, and movies. Steeped in nostalgia and filled with vivid imagery, this work is a magnificent addition to Eco’s literary legacy.

About the Author: Umberto Eco is the author of five bestselling novels and numerous collections of essays. A professor of semiotics at the University of Bologna, he lives in Italy.