First published 2012
A man wakes to find his belongings vanished. A dog speaks in human tongues. In these early stories from Nobel laureate José Saramago, the ordinary transforms into the uncanny, exposing the absurdities of authoritarian Portugal. Saramago's sharp wit and surreal imagination craft a portrait of a nation constrained, where the line between reality and fantasy blurs. Beneath the dark humor, these tales pulse with social commentary, inviting readers to see the world anew through Saramago's penetrating lens.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, 20th-century, 21st-century
Vibes: dark, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: absurdist, magical-realism
Setting: Portugal
Period: 20th-century, 21st-century
160 pages · Paperback · Verso Books