Panzini, Alfredo

Panzini, Alfredo

(älfrĕ`dō päntsē`nē), 1863–1939, Italian novelist and lexicographer; pupil of Giosuè Carducci. He taught in secondary schools. His genial, popular novels include Libro dei morti [book of the dead] (1893), Santippe (1914), Io cerco moglie (1920, tr. Wanted—a Wife, 1922), and Il diavolo nella mia libreria [the devil in my library] (1920). His modern dictionary, which included slang, went through many editions. He also wrote historical works. Some of his short stories are translated in F. M. Guercio, Anthology of Contemporary Italian Prose (1931).