Writers on Reading

In going through old NYT Book Reviews, I found a review dated 12/30/12 for Jose Saramago's book, Raised from the Ground.  This novel, first published in Portugal in 1980, appeared in English translation.  That it has come out 14 years after Saramago won the Nobel and two years after his death is a surprise.  A striking quoted metaphor in the review caught my breath:

"(he ) sits slumped in the chair like an empty jacket."

 

This is the sort of lyrical prose transcends popular fiction and fuels my lust for the literary.  I've read Blindness, The Cave and All the Names.  Saramago was a master of the allegory and his joy with words sparkles throughout.

 

catherine@catherinealexander.net