A review by sawyerbell
The Society of Reluctant Dreamers by José Eduardo Agualusa
3.0
3.5 stars. An Angolan journalist, living in a liminal state after his divorce, begins to have strange dreams. He meets a man who appears in others' dreams. On day, while swimming, he finds a camera floating in the ocean. It contains dream imagery that immediately captivates him. This find leads him to travel from Angola to South Africa to Brazil and back. In the meantime his daughter, a political prisoner, acts out her dreams for a better Angola by going on a hunger strike.
I've read two other books by Angualusa: The Book of Chameleons and A General Theory of Oblivion and loved each for their rich imagery, use of magic realism and the author's ability to invite the reader into his dream-world. This book too offers the same invitation into a dream-world. Logic and time are distorted; images are vivid and portentous. However, I did not like this novel as much as I hoped I would as the last third of the story dragged and I didn't really care about any of the characters. As well, creating realistic female characters is not the author's strength. Nonetheless, I'd recommend this for fans of magic realism or for those wishing to learn more about Angolan society and the lingering impact of colonialism and inequality.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for offering me an ARC in exchange for a fair review.
I've read two other books by Angualusa: The Book of Chameleons and A General Theory of Oblivion and loved each for their rich imagery, use of magic realism and the author's ability to invite the reader into his dream-world. This book too offers the same invitation into a dream-world. Logic and time are distorted; images are vivid and portentous. However, I did not like this novel as much as I hoped I would as the last third of the story dragged and I didn't really care about any of the characters. As well, creating realistic female characters is not the author's strength. Nonetheless, I'd recommend this for fans of magic realism or for those wishing to learn more about Angolan society and the lingering impact of colonialism and inequality.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for offering me an ARC in exchange for a fair review.