There are similarities between Montalbán's Pepe Carvalho and Camilleri's fictional detective, as both writers make great play of their protagonists' gastronomic preferences, but also notable differences reflecting different inspirational life experiences.Īccording to the novel A Voice in the Night, chapter 1, Salvo was born on 6 September 1950. The name Montalbano is a homage to the Spanish writer Manuel Vázquez Montalbán. In addition, he has added notes at the end of each of the novels, which give short explanations regarding many of the peculiarities of Sicilian and Italian society depicted in the novels. Sartarelli has attempted to maintain the mixture of Italian and Sicilian language in the dialogues. The translation of the Montalbano novels started only after five novels had already been published in Italian and gained popularity among the Italian-speaking public. The novels were translated into English by Stephen Sartarelli.
#Comisario montalbano series
Īlthough the Inspector Montalbano series of novels is staged in the Sicilian context, Camilleri uncompromisingly confronts many contemporary political and social problems. Montalbano excels at balancing between these two, while being true to his principles. On the opposite side is the particularistic "southern" culture with complex webs of relationships that affect the way things are done. There is the "northern" force, coming from Rome, Milan that attempts to standardize regulations and increase transparency. In this role he is balancing between the demands of his superiors and the realities of local crime and life in general in fact, a determining factor of his success as a Sicilian policeman seems to be his ability to bridge between different cultures. He is the chief of the police station ( Italian: Commissario) of the fictional town of Vigata. This also allowed me to show the progression and evolution in the character of Montalbano." In my books, I deliberately decided to smuggle into a detective novel a critical commentary on my times. In many crime novels, the events seem completely detached from the economic, political and social context in which they occur. In fact, Camilleri has said that social commentary "was always my aim.
There is a great deal of humour in his character, such as his unconditional love for silence while enjoying a good meal, but the primary subtext is hard criticism of the social and political situation of both the Sicilian and Italian contexts. One of the strengths of the novels is Montalbano's ability to navigate through a murky world, a world of shady connections and favours owed and owing, without compromising himself beyond what he can live with. He has his own way of doing things, and his superiors regard him as something of a loose cannon. Inspector Montalbano is an engaging hero – honest, decent and loyal. The detective's character encapsulates astute detective work and a fractious manner.