JOSÉ SARAMAGO (1922-2010) was the author of many novels, among them Blindness, All the Names, Baltasar and Blimunda, and The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis. In 1998 he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature.
EUROPEAN PRAISE FOR THE CAVE "A magnificent novel and an allegory
of our times."--Diário de Notícias (Portugal) "Another modest epic
of anonymous heroes in extreme situations."--El Periódico (Spain)
PRAISE FOR ALL THE NAMES "A psychological, even metaphysical
thriller that will keep you turning the pages in spite of yourself,
and with growing alarm and alacrity."--The Seattle Times "Reveals a
master far from content to rest on his laurels."--The Wall Street
Journal PRAISE FOR BLINDNESS "This is an important book, one that
is unafraid to face all of the horrors of the century."--The New
York Times "A shattering work by a literary master."--The Boston
Globe
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The struggle of the individual against bureaucracy and anonymity is one of the great subjects of modern literature, and Saramago is often matched with Kafka as one of its premier exponents. Apt as the comparison is, it doesn't convey the warmth and rueful human dimension of novels like Blindness and All the Names. Those qualities are particularly evident in his latest brilliant, dark allegory, which links the encroaching sterility of modern life to the parable of Plato's cave. Widowed Cipriano Algor is a 64-year-old Portuguese potter who finds his business collapsing when the demand dries up for his elegant, handcrafted wares. His potential fate seems worse than poverty-to move with his daughter, Marta, and his son-in-law, Maral Gacho, into a huge, arid complex known as "The Center," where Gacho works as a security guard. But Algor gets an order from the Center for hundreds of small ceramic figurines, a task that has Marta and Algor hustling to meet the delivery date. Saramago's flowing, luminous prose (beautifully translated by Costa) serves him well in the early going as he portrays the intricacies of Algor's artistic life and the beginning of his friendship with a widow he meets at the cemetery. The middle chapters bog down as the author lingers over the process of creating the dolls and the family's ongoing debate over Algor's future. But Saramago makes up for the brief slow stretch with a stunning ending after the doll project crashes, when Algor becomes a resident of the Center and finds a shocking surprise in a cave unearthed beneath it. The characters are as finely crafted as Algor's pottery, and Saramago deserves special kudos for his one-dog canine chorus, a stray mutt named Found that Algor adopts as his emotional sounding board. Saramago has an extraordinary ability to make a complex narrative read like a simple parable. This remarkably generous and eloquent novel is another landmark work from an 80-year-old literary giant who remains at the height of his powers. (Nov.) Forecast: Saramago goes from strength to strength, and his readership continues to grow in the U.S. This novel should sell well initially and will be a staple backlist title. Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.
EUROPEAN PRAISE FOR THE CAVE "A magnificent novel and
an allegory of our times."--Diario de Noticias (Portugal)
"Another modest epic of anonymous heroes in extreme
situations."--El Periodico (Spain) PRAISE FOR ALL THE
NAMES "A psychological, even metaphysical thriller that will
keep you turning the pages in spite of yourself, and with growing
alarm and alacrity."--The Seattle Times "Reveals a master
far from content to rest on his laurels."--The Wall Street
Journal PRAISE FOR BLINDNESS "This is an important
book, one that is unafraid to face all of the horrors of the
century."--The New York Times "A shattering work by a
literary master."--The Boston Globe
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