Malta: Living on the Edge of Europe
Thoughts and happenings from a life on Malta
The Elephant’s Journey – Jose Saramago
The Elephant’s Journey is based on a event which actually happened in the 1500s – the journey of an elephant – a gift form one royalty to another- from Portugal to Austria. Despite its historical background, this is mainly a work of fiction and a pleasant one at that too.
The author, who is also the a narrator of the story, embellishes the prose with elements of humour and occasional digressions. These, though, nearly always take the form of philosophical motes or insights into the workings of human nature.
What may be off-putting to anyone tackling a Saramago novel for the first time is the near absence of punctuation. Through personal experience I can say that after a few pages the reader will get accustomed to this unorthodox manner of writing; very rarely have I had to reread a couple of lines just to clarify who said what.
This is certainly the Jose Saramago I know and enjoy so this is reflected in my score of 9/10.
A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan
“A Visit From The Goon Squad” hits too close to home for my liking. It deals with the passage of time and its effects, not always welcome. It hopscotches from one decade to another, completing a calender that spans the decades to the present day; it leaps from one character to another, completing the web of connections over the years.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading Jennifer Egan’s book so why does it cloak me in melancholy? The author ably holds up a cracked mirror to reflect the inevitable fractured dreams her readers must have experienced as their own lives transitioned from blithe youthfulness to sombre adulthood. Since this occurs in a time frame runs parallel to my own and references that date stamp events are ones that also left a mark on my life, I couldn’t help but catch glimpses of my own life.
Not all is grey and brooding, however. There are humorous moments and the novel closes on a high; the mirror might be cracked but the individual shards can still reflect a beautifully intact image.
I give this a 9/10.
Eleanor Roosevelt:
"Do what you can, with what you've got, where you are."
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