Há um sr. José de quem tenho permanentes saudades,que criou um outro sr. José que não sabia estar no mundo de forma feliz.
Ambos ( ou o mesmo) são um universo de paradoxos que exercem um fascínio tremendo nas minhas características de leitor.

O sr. José demiurgo, na sua clássica visão desesperançada sobre a realidade, exerce uma espécie de feitiçaria sobre o banal, tornando-o grotesco e sensível, delicado e rude, agressivo na acção,mas cuidadoso na reacção, que o elevam,muito frequentemente, à condição de parábola frustre.

O sr. José personagem,no classissimo de uma existência crua, hierarquizada e rotineira, insufla a confrangedora solidão com essa magia, e procura, obstinadamente, um resgate identitário que lhe aqueça um pouco os pés.

Para lá das referências ideológicas latentes,de uma angústia obstinada,crescente e distópica, esconde-se uma preciosa reflexão sobre a identidade e a fronteira forjada entre a vida e a morte. Num livro de pequenos gestos ( fascinantes pequenos desvios que crescem numa lenta mas crescente espiral) mas grande maturidade,fica a ideia mais humanizada do autor.

Este que é, possivelmente,um dos títulos menos celebrados da bibliografia do sr. Saramago,foi, provavelmente,aquele que mais prazer me deu.

Obra Prima!

All The Names is the third book I have read by Jose Saramago. Blindness and Seeing left strong lasting impressions on me, and I expected this novel to do the same.

Except I found myself having to take numerous breaks from this one. While Saramago starts out with an interesting subject on which to base his book,(A clerk at the Central Registry comes across a card for an unknown woman, and becomes obsessed with hunting her down and collecting as much information as he can about her), It would have done much better as a shorter novel. The main character has long drawn out talks with his ceiling, which represents the multiple eye of God... and also comes through as his conscious.... and the author over-thinks and over-comtemplates everything.

The author writes in run-on sentences, does not use normal punctuation, and his paragraphs can go on for up to three pages without a break.

While I liked the novel (hence the three stars) it was hell to get through, it certainly didnt read smoothly at all, and with out taking regular breaks from it, Im sure I would be half crazy by now. This book will take a lot of work, but in the end, I would say it is worth it.

This one was odd. Hardly a hero, hardly a story, bland.
But Saramago wrote it so it was fun to read, really.
“All the lonely people, where do they all come from.
All the lonely people, where do they all belong?”