Night Train to Lisbon Pascal Mercier David Colacci Barbara Harshav 9781455849673 Books
Download As PDF : Night Train to Lisbon Pascal Mercier David Colacci Barbara Harshav 9781455849673 Books
Raimund Gregorius teaches classical languages at a Swiss lycée, and lives a life governed by routine. One day, a chance encounter with a Portuguese woman inspires him to question his life—and leads him to an extraordinary book that will open the possibility of changing it. Inspired by the words of Amadeu de Prado, a doctor whose intelligence and magnetism left a mark on everyone who met him and whose principles led him into a confrontation with Salazar’s dictatorship, Gregorius boards a train to Lisbon. As Gregorius becomes fascinated with unlocking the mystery of who Prado was, an extraordinary tale unfolds.
“A treat for the mind. One of the best books I have read in a long time.” —Isabel Allende
“A rare reading pleasure.” —San Francisco Chronicle
“One of the great European novels of the past few years.” —Page des libraires (France)
Night Train to Lisbon Pascal Mercier David Colacci Barbara Harshav 9781455849673 Books
**Some Spoilers**Many Americans did not like this book, they thought it was slow and too philosophical. It is an overwhelmingly philosophical book but despite being a bit slow I found the prose of this book intoxicatingly beautiful. Amadeu Prado, the main character is a man tormented and torn between his own yearnings and desires and the very high expectations his family (especially his father) placed on him. Gregorius found his book in an old Spanish bookshop in Bern, Switzerland where he works as a teacher of Ancient languages. He leaves in the middle of the lesson and without much planning is bound on a trip to Portugal that will lead him to discover almost everything about the life of Prado. In a way is a journey of self discovery as he learns more about the troubled life of Prado and what lead to his untimely death. Prado studied Medicine because his father wanted him to become a respected and prestigious Doctor but his true desire was to Study Literature and Philosophy. He questioned how different his life would have been had he follow his heart instead of doing what was expected of him. Growing up and living in the Portugal of the dictator Salazar he also questioned the existence of God and resented his father for working as a judge for the regime. I found this book fascinating because like Prado and many people around the world I have questioned myself about certains choices I've made throughout my life. It is a wonderful book but it is not meant for people who like light or what I call "fluffy" reading. This book is for enquiring minds and for people who appreciate the unfolding of a good story, albeit a slow one.
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Night Train to Lisbon Pascal Mercier David Colacci Barbara Harshav 9781455849673 Books Reviews
'Night Train to Lisbon' is a rare achievement of philosophical thinking, in a setting of revolution. It twins the marvelous action film of Bille August also named 'Night Train to Lisbon'. I saw the film first and turned to the novel to find answers to the questions of meaning. I can imagine that it would be equally valid to turn to the film if one had read the book first. The film simplifies the action making it more striking and coherent, the book provides the depth of thinking that is lacking on the screen.
The basis of both book and film is a fictitious book revealing the thinking of a medical doctor living in the era of Salazar the Portuguese dictator. In the film we hear only a few sentences of the book, but the total text is embedded in the novel, and could be usefully reprinted as a separate text. The philosophy is basically that of the Stoic Marcus Aurelius, dressed in more contemporary Existentialist clothing.
The drama is that of a resistance to dictatorship, Ten years after the downfall of Salazar I had the experience of participating in a commemorative dinner in Lisbon in the company of those who had experienced the revolution and next day responded to their invitation to join the commemorative march where we carried red carnations as they had done ten years before.
Both book and film allow one to share in this feast of freedom. Today, I live under a military dictatorship and long for the experience of freedom so graphically depicted in both versions of "Night Train to Lisbon"
I came to the book after seeing the movie. As often is the case the story they relate is told differently and the endings differ dramatically. Now I have to go back and watch the movie again.
The premise of the plot seemed improbable. An older teacher of ancient languages in Bern Switzerland walks out of his classroom in the middle of class in pursuit of a young Portuguese women he had just prevented from killing herself. He buys a book she was carrying written by a doctor in Lisbon. It is an introspective, self examining, philosophical soul searching journal. His object of pursuit shifts from the young woman to the author of the book. He packs his bag and takes a night train to Lisbon.
But the story pulled me in. The narrator learns immediately on arrival in Lisbon that the author he seeks is 30 years dead. The book is about the narrator's search to learn about what kind of man the author was that could have such a powerful impact on him to cause him to walk away from his life in pursuit of a stranger.
The book contains long passages from the book and other writings by the doctor that he comes across. The narrator meets most of people the doctor writes about.
With an intellectual teacher in pursuit of understanding a sensitive, gifted author the book is inevitably often about philosophy and self examination, stated or implied. That might turn off a number of readers but I pressed on. The movie leaves all the philosophy out and focuses on character's interaction in flashbacks of the past.
Toward the end, the philosophizing seemed to become too much and the intellectual elements sort of fell apart for me.
The ending of the book and the movie are polar opposites. If you want a story which contains a lot of inner self-examination and philosophizing, read the book. If you want the same story told as a straightforward romantic tale of love, struggle against evil, friendship, family, betrayal and loss see the movie. If you enjoy comparing and contrasting how the same story is told in the two media forms as I do, you will enjoy both.
**Some Spoilers**
Many Americans did not like this book, they thought it was slow and too philosophical. It is an overwhelmingly philosophical book but despite being a bit slow I found the prose of this book intoxicatingly beautiful. Amadeu Prado, the main character is a man tormented and torn between his own yearnings and desires and the very high expectations his family (especially his father) placed on him. Gregorius found his book in an old Spanish bookshop in Bern, Switzerland where he works as a teacher of Ancient languages. He leaves in the middle of the lesson and without much planning is bound on a trip to Portugal that will lead him to discover almost everything about the life of Prado. In a way is a journey of self discovery as he learns more about the troubled life of Prado and what lead to his untimely death. Prado studied Medicine because his father wanted him to become a respected and prestigious Doctor but his true desire was to Study Literature and Philosophy. He questioned how different his life would have been had he follow his heart instead of doing what was expected of him. Growing up and living in the Portugal of the dictator Salazar he also questioned the existence of God and resented his father for working as a judge for the regime. I found this book fascinating because like Prado and many people around the world I have questioned myself about certains choices I've made throughout my life. It is a wonderful book but it is not meant for people who like light or what I call "fluffy" reading. This book is for enquiring minds and for people who appreciate the unfolding of a good story, albeit a slow one.
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