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Citesc romanul unui autor tânăr.

Citesc romanul unui autor tânăr.
I am reading the novel of a young author.
From Lesson 104:Genitive and dative indefinite articles (unui, unei, unor)·Romanian

Questions & Answers about Citesc romanul unui autor tânăr.

Why do we use unui instead of just un?
Unui is the genitive form of the masculine indefinite article (un). It translates to "of a". In Romanian, to show possession or a creator's connection to their work, we use the genitive case. So, unui autor means "of an author".
Why does romanul have the definite article -ul attached to it?
In Romanian, when you construct a phrase like "the [thing] of [someone]", the first noun requires a definite article. You must say romanul (the novel) before the genitive phrase unui autor to properly anchor the relationship.
Does the adjective tânăr change to match the genitive case of unui autor?
No, because it comes after the noun. When an adjective follows a noun that already has a genitive article like unui, the adjective stays in its standard dictionary form. It is masculine and singular to match autor, but it takes no special genitive ending.
Can Citesc also mean "I read" as a general habit?
Yes! Romanian does not have a separate present continuous tense. The single present tense verb citesc translates to both "I read" and "I am reading" depending on the context.

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