The Book of Chameleons by José Eduardo Agualusa. I really enjoyed reading this week’s novel; I honestly feel like the books get more easier to read the more we go further into the course, and I’m not sure if it’s just me learning how to ‘read’ books or if the books get more digestible as […]
Posted in Blogs | Tagged with chameleons, gecko, identity, lies, past, truth
This week’s read was The Book of Chameleons by José Eduardo. From the title, I had assumed that our lizard narrator would be a chameleon, but funny enough, he was a gecko. After reading this book, it definitely makes sense that it was titled afte…
Posted in Blogs | Tagged with change, identity, lies, The Book of Chameleons
This week’s read was The Book of Chameleons by José Eduardo. From the title, I had assumed that our lizard narrator would be a chameleon, but funny enough, he was a gecko. After reading this book, it definitely makes sense that it was titled afte…
Posted in Blogs | Tagged with change, identity, lies, The Book of Chameleons
The Book of Chameleons by José Eduardo Agualusa was one filled with such complexities as the revealings of truth and discovery are wrapped up in tellings of the past, present, and imagination. This book had so much going on that I was completely shocked at every revealing, I felt like I literally gasped throughout this book. I almost don’t even know where to start. At first this story is about a man named Felix Ventura and an observational gecko. This gecko lives in the home of Felix Ventura who is…read more
Posted in Blogs | Tagged with lies, revealings, the past
This book was so fun to read. Gecko’s and magic, who would have thought that would make a good combination! Also, finally a book with short chapter!!! There were so many interesting characters in this novel. I found Felix’s job so intriguing. He gave people completely new identities and new background stories, and basically erased […]
Posted in Blogs | Tagged with chameleons, identity, lies, literature
I won’t lie, I wasn’t particularly excited about this book, but I surprisingly enjoyed it. It’s definitely original, fun with a dash of philosophical thoughts. The Book of Chameleons takes us on a journey of identity, memory, and truth, blurring the lines between reality and fiction. Past = Identity? “My soul hurts with too much […]
Posted in Agualusa, Blogs | Tagged with Dreams, Germany, identity, Jorge Luis Borges, lies, life, Personal Growth, Philosophy, Portugal, The Book of Chameleons
I cannot believe this is the second to last book for this course. I’m surprised how fast this semester has flown by. I’m also excited that I can honestly answer someone if they ask, “when the last time you’ve read a book?” and I reply by saying one of these books. I decided to push …
Posted in Blogs, Cercas | Tagged with connections, lies, truth, war
I liked how this novel, although it was separated into 3 parts, tied together. Some of the other texts we’ve gone over throughout the semester have been confusing or difficult to put together due to uncertain timelines, memory rambling, or whatever it may be. This one seemed to stay on track for the most part. […]
Posted in Blogs, Cercas | Tagged with journalism, lies, personality, rambling, Romance text, truth, war, Weekly Response
The Old Gringo was a book that caught my eye at the beginning of choosing our texts because it was somewhat a romance. I did not expect this book to be all about love, but more themes of war and violence in the story. The Old Gringo was an engaging text about a man known as “Old Gringo” who came to Mexico to die. At the beginning of the novel, there was repetition with the words, the old gringo has come to Mexico to die. I believe that this repetition forces the reader to know what the gringo’s intentions were at the start, to see later that at the end, he has somewhat found a purpose to live. The Old Gringo travels to Mexico, meets Arroyo, and asks him to join his army. After proving himself, Arroyo lets him join, and he meets a lady called Harriet. He quickly falls for her, despite not wanting to but lets himself anyways. Harriet feels like she must protect the old man, so she joins the army to assist onside. The Old Gringo gets into a fight with Arroyo, and Arroyo betrays him by forcing Harriet into a sexual relationship with him, or else he will kill the old man. This tricky love triangle arises in the novel because of conflict. Harriet agrees to this because she wants to protect the old man. Later the old man is found out to be the American author, and Arroyo and him get violent. The Old Gringo dies, and his American support allows a proper burial and charges against Arroyo. This wicked love story filled with violence, repetition, and memories brought me many feelings towards feeling sad for The Old Gringo because he was honouring his morals, and for Harriet because it is unclear whether she genuinely desired Arroyo. I feel hatred towards Arroyo; however, in the end, I feel somewhat bad for him because of the new life he will have to bear, and because he could have killed the old man for his misguided actions before but let him live, however in a painful way. One thing that still remains unclear for me is the repetition of “Now she sits alone and remembers.” I am confused as to who this is referring to. Whether it’s Harriet because the novel is in her point of view, or if it’s an outside character? My question is, what do you guys think the meaning is of the repetition of “Now she sits alone and remembers” is, and who maybe is the one remembering?
Posted in Blogs, Fuentes | Tagged with betrayal, death, lies, love, protection, romance, survival
The Old Gringo was a book that caught my eye at the beginning of choosing our texts because it was somewhat a romance. I did not expect this book to be all about love, but more themes of war and violence in the story. The Old Gringo was an engaging text about a man known as “Old Gringo” who came to Mexico to die. At the beginning of the novel, there was repetition with the words, the old gringo has come to Mexico to die. I believe that this repetition forces the reader to know what the gringo’s intentions were at the start, to see later that at the end, he has somewhat found a purpose to live. The Old Gringo travels to Mexico, meets Arroyo, and asks him to join his army. After proving himself, Arroyo lets him join, and he meets a lady called Harriet. He quickly falls for her, despite not wanting to but lets himself anyways. Harriet feels like she must protect the old man, so she joins the army to assist onside. The Old Gringo gets into a fight with Arroyo, and Arroyo betrays him by forcing Harriet into a sexual relationship with him, or else he will kill the old man. This tricky love triangle arises in the novel because of conflict. Harriet agrees to this because she wants to protect the old man. Later the old man is found out to be the American author, and Arroyo and him get violent. The Old Gringo dies, and his American support allows a proper burial and charges against Arroyo. This wicked love story filled with violence, repetition, and memories brought me many feelings towards feeling sad for The Old Gringo because he was honouring his morals, and for Harriet because it is unclear whether she genuinely desired Arroyo. I feel hatred towards Arroyo; however, in the end, I feel somewhat bad for him because of the new life he will have to bear, and because he could have killed the old man for his misguided actions before but let him live, however in a painful way. One thing that still remains unclear for me is the repetition of “Now she sits alone and remembers.” I am confused as to who this is referring to. Whether it’s Harriet because the novel is in her point of view, or if it’s an outside character? My question is, what do you guys think the meaning is of the repetition of “Now she sits alone and remembers” is, and who maybe is the one remembering?
Posted in Blogs, Fuentes | Tagged with betrayal, death, lies, love, protection, romance, survival
