Zeno Cosini

Zeno is the narrator of the book, since it is his journal. He is a ridiculous, mercurial character, constantly changing his mind and sabotaging his own life. He smokes as much as possible, from a very young age, yet marks every date in his life with a Last Cigarette, sure that this time, he will really quit smoking. Whenever he feels awkward socially, he tells wild jokes, often at his own expense. If he wants to get away from some circumstance or habit, he usually attempts it by plunging himself into the temptation, getting himself further into trouble. He is immature, and never, it seems, tempted to grow up. He admits openly that in seeking a wife, he is truly seeking a second mother, so that he can remain a little boy forever.

Zeno loves pursuing women, all pretty women, and especially women in little patent-leather boots...