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Adult life doesn’t want you to read books, but you can always go against it.
It’s hard to keep the good old reading habit, but some people make it work. You may ask how, and the answer is: reading while commuting! Here are some of the books we saw people reading in the last couple of weeks, while riding on public transport.
DUNe- Frank Herbert (1965)
Recently, either from the TikTok edits or the actual movie, you probably have heard of this universe. Dune is a six-book franchise (officially, since many others fit the universe, but weren’t written by the official author) that has become a classic in the sci-fi world. Talking about worlds… The story’s set on a deserted planet – Arrakis. In the first book, we follow a boy named Paul Atreides whose family was set to rule the world. Suddenly, there’s a turning point in the narrative, given that the Atreides family is betrayed, so we now follow Paul’s new journey – which, believe it or not, leads him to a great destiny.
SALVAR O FOGO – Itamar Vieira Junior (2023)
In a tiny village, a boy – Moisés – lost his mother and now lives with his older sister – Luzia – and his father. This story follows his life under his sister’s guidance. They have a difficult relationship, she is strict with him, given that she hopes for a better life. Luzia puts the boy to study in a monastery, and he deals with the judgment of people towards his sister, who is not accepted by the community. After a huge disagreement, Moisés leaves for the city and stays there for a while, when all of a sudden, he gets a call and discovers something that makes him go back to meet his sister. Now, the story uncovers years of trauma and secrets within the family.
Rainha do Nada – Hollywood Black (2020)
This book is the third and last of his trilogy, it’s a young adult fantasy that follows Jude, a girl whose life is quite messy after a bunch of betrayals. Now as the Great Queen of Elfhame, she tries to regain the Queendom of her old empire as well as her lover, Cardan. This book finishes the intense story of this queen’s empire and personal life.
SUICIDAS – Raphael Montes (2012)
Raphael’s first romance, a clever and daring mystery – which became his trademark-, took the author to the Brazilian thriller scene. We are introduced to the story of Alê and his friends, who were found dead in the basement of a farm of one of them, in a bizarrely violent and mysterious condition. The evidence leads everyone to think that the young people participated in a fatal game.
The biggest question is why this group of university students from Rio’s elite participated in a Russian roulette. Those who stayed were left to discover what happened, what the apparently promising young people and exemplary students were hiding. Social masks tragically fall, bringing the truth of their lives.
Slowly it is shown what happened to each of them. The narrative is divided in two parts, the first being the story that we read through Ale’s diary, and the second that shares the post-tragedy, in which all the mothers reunite for a meeting with the police.
Post by @companiadasletras announcing the launch of the book.
FELICIDADE CLANDESTINA (1971) – Clarice Lispector
“What about masks? I was afraid, but it was a vital and necessary fear because it went against my deepest suspicion that the human face was also a kind of mask.”
Clarice refuses to surrender to gender prison, creating an intimate writing, organized in a way that breaks the classical structure, following the character’s flow of thoughts. It’s a collection of texts written during different periods of Clarice’s life. They talk about childhood, friendship, identity, life’s dilemmas, and paradoxes. The texts are, for the most part, autobiographical with sparks of fiction.
It’s not a book to read fast, you may need time to absorb the author’s codes. If you like to reflect, this book is for you.
Post by @editorarocco announcing the collection “Clarice Essencial”.
O CURSO DO AMOR (2017) – Alain de Botton
What happens after the “happily ever after”? This is what Alain wants to talk about in “O curso do amor”. The author reflects on themes such as what is romantic, how to love and, especially, how to make this feeling last, exploring modern relationships. This is presented through the narrative of Rabih and Kisten, a couple who meet in Edinburgh, fall in love, get married, and have children. Normally that is where the stories end, but Botton has just begun.
Alain explores the social construction of the idea of love, and how it changes throughout the experience of a couple, superficiality is evaded by everyday life. Maybe love is also a skill? Let’s see what you think after reading the excerpt!
“In love, the most superficially irrational, immature, regrettable and yet common assumption is that the person to whom we commit ourselves is not only the center of our emotional life but also – in a very strange, objectively insane and deeply unfair way – consequently responsible for everything that happens to us, for good or for bad. Therein lies the peculiar and unhealthy privilege of love.”
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The article above was edited by Lorena Lindenberg
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