Italo Calvino

Hello! My name is Italo. I was born in a warm, sunny place called Cuba on October 15th, 1923. After I was born, I grew up in a beautiful country called Italy. My parents were scientists who loved flowers and plants, and our home was full of nature's wonders. I loved looking at the world around me and imagining all sorts of fantastic things.

Instead of studying plants, I loved to make up stories! I would think of the silliest, most wonderful ideas and write them down in books. I once wrote a story about a boy who got upset, climbed into a tree, and decided to live up in the branches for his whole life! Can you imagine that? My books are full of fun ideas like that, with magical cities and knights who are not really there. I loved to play with words and ideas to make people smile and think.

I wrote stories for many years and lived to be 61 years old. Today, children and grown-ups all over the world still read my books. My stories help them use their imaginations to see the world in new, exciting, and playful ways, and that makes me very happy.