Long hailed as a seminal work of modernism in the tradition of Joyce and Kafka, and now available in a supple new English translation, Italo Svevo’s charming and splendidly idiosyncratic novel conducts readers deep into one hilariously hyperactive and endlessly self-deluding mind. The mind in question belongs to Zeno Cosini, a neurotic Italian businessman who is writing his confessions at the behest of his psychiatrist. Here are Zeno’s interminable attempts to quit smoking, his courtship of the beautiful yet unresponsive Ada, his unexpected–and unexpectedly happy–marriage to Ada’s homely sister Augusta, and his affair with a shrill-voiced aspiring singer. Relating these misadventures with wry wit and a perspicacity at once unblinking and compassionate, Zeno’s Conscience is a miracle of psychological realism.

伊塔洛·斯维沃（Italo Svevo，1861-1928），意大利犹太商人兼小说家，被誉为二十世纪最出色小说家之一。大器晚成，六十岁后才写出成名作《泽诺的意识》，此书令詹姆斯·乔伊斯击节称叹。正当他享誉欧美文坛、正欲更上一层楼时，却在一次意外的车祸中遇难身亡。

斯维沃著有长篇小说《一生》、《暮年》、《泽诺的意识》，短篇小说集《高贵的酒》、《成功的玩笑》等。另有十余个剧本、十部中篇小说和一部书信集。

黄文捷（1929- ），1953年毕业于北京大学西语系，2006年获全国资深翻译家称号。主要译著有：但丁《神曲》、斯维沃《泽诺的意识》、普拉托利尼《苦难情侣》、皮兰德娄《格腊内拉的房子》、莫拉维亚《魔鬼不能拯救世界》、《偷看他人做爱者的漫游》、达里奥·福《不付钱！不付钱！》、克罗齐《美学或艺术和语言哲学》等。