Books, etc & tal

When I was 3 years old, I used to amuse relatives by "reading" my story books. I had memorized the text and was even able to move my hand over the text as I recited it. I started really reading at 5 and never stopped. I guess I have to thank my parents for the initial early incentive.

I've read a lot since I was a kid, all my life. Some of what I read was good. Most of what I read was in Portuguese (Brazilian and Portuguese literature and translations), but lately I have read more in English.

My favorite contemporary author is Milan Kundera ("Immortality", "Unbearable Lightness of Being"), He is Czech-French and his best books were written in Czech in the 80's (including the two above mentioned). He now lives in Paris and releases a book every other year. While his writing is still beautiful, his stories are not as good as before.

As a kid, I read a lot of Monteiro Lobato ("Sitio do Pica Pau Amarelo"), a Brazilian writer of children's books. In my teenage years I read a lot of good literature, but specially liked the adventure/science fiction by Julius Verne ("Around the world in 80 days"). During college years, read a lot of junk and some good short stories and poetry by Carlos Drummond de Andrade ("E agora, Jose?") and Fernando Pessoa (the greatest poet in Portuguese). Erico Verissimo and Machado de Assis are other two Brazilan authors that influenced me considerably.

Lately I have been reading a lot of the Russian classics (Dostoyevsky, Tolstoi), some US American literature, and re-reading some old favorites.

Unforgettable books: "Dom Casmurro" by Machado de Assis, "Immortality" and "Unbearable Lightness of Being" by Kundera, "Brave New World" by Huxley.

Favorite Author: Milan Kundera, by far the most beautiful writing style I've ever read. He should go back to Prague and write in Czech, his Parisian books are not as good.

What follows is a listing of books/authors that I've read. I probably forgot many forgettable ones and some I read too long ago. While I think everything I read, good or bad, was important, I marked the most relevant or the ones I know better for reading a larger set of their work with an (*).

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Alencar, Jose de - A Brazilian classic we are forced to read while in junior-high. I haven't touched it after. "O Guarani" is one of his best known novels.

Amado, Jorge (*) - He is one of the most translated Brazilian authors. His most famous books are "Gabriela, Cravo e Canela" ("Gabriela, Cloves and Cinnamon") and "Dona Flor e seus Dois Maridos" ("Dona Flor and her two husbands"). The most memorable (I read all of them) of the books I read in my early teeenager years, when I was too young to fully understand them were "Capitaes d'Areia" and "Jubiaba".

Ambler, Eric - I'm not sure he is even considered a first-line suspense writer, but I ready "Coffin for Dimitrius" and a few other books in my teenager years and was very impressed by it. It is real suspense and mistery. I couldn't sleep well during the days I was reading it.

Andrade, Carlos Drummond (*) - He is one of the most important comtemporary writers in the Brazilian literature. I read most of what he wrote. I read his short stories in my early teenager years. "Corpo" is not one of his best works, but was my introduction to poetry in my college years.

Assis, Machado de (*) - A classic novelist of Brazilian literature. His best known book and my favorite is "Dom Casmurro", with the unforgetable  Capitu (the English translation is ok, but don't read the preface). "Memorias de Bras Cubas" is another of his famous works.

Bach, Richard - The first chaptar of his "Illusions" brings a collection of hand-written items about a certain Master. This book was important to a important friend and so it is to me.

Blake, William - Read some of his poems. But don't really know his works.

Mello, João Cabral Neto - Considered one of the best modern poets in Brazil. Wrote poems  and plays ambiented in the Brazilian Northeast. "Morte e Vida Severina" is his masterpiece.

Camões - Considered one of the great poets and the greatest in Portuguese literature (I personally think Fernando Pessoa is better). What he wrote is old and I haven't really read much.

Campos, Paulo Mendes - I ready many of his short stories. I would say that, after Verissimo, he is the best Brazilian "cronista".

Christie, Agatha - Read most of her mistery stories. "Death on the Nile" was one of the most memorable. While I read a lot of mistery and suspense while I was a teen, I like other authors much better than Aghata.

Clarke, Arthur (*) - His "2001" is a brilliant science-fiction work. Follow-ups such as "2010" and others sucked.

Coelho, Paulo - I read most of the books by this Brazilian "new-age", international best-seller author. My friends keep sending his books to me. I think his "The alchemist" is the only one worth the (short) time needed to read it (and is available in a best-seller shelf close to you).

Cunningham, Michael - "The Hours", which won him the 1998 Pulitzer Prize has a beautiful writing style that reminds me of Kundera. The story of three women living in different times.

DeMasi, Domenico - An Italian philosopher who became very popular (in Italy and Brazil, at least) by promoting the notion that we work too much. He defends that in the pos-industrial era, we should work less and be happier. He bullshits a lot, but some of the ideas are interesting.

Dostoevsky, Fyodor (*) - After reading Tolstoi's "Anna Karenina", decided to read one more of the Russian classics. "Brother Karamazov" and "Crime and Punishment" are as dark, less entertaining, but philosophically richer than the former. Worth every page.

Doyle, Sir Conan - Of course, Watson, I read most of Sherlock Holmes' stories. The most memorable and scary was the "Cao de Baskervilles" (don't know the title in English).

Fitzgerald, F. Scott - I read (and was not impressed by) the classic "The Great Gatsby", which I think is highly overrated. "Tender is the Night" is still in my "to read" stack.

Gaines, Ernest - His best-selling "A lesson before dying" is an entertaining and moving story of a black man living in the 40's and being unfairly convicted of a murder and sentenced to death.

Gaarder, Jostein - I'd rather have read his entertaining introduction to philosophy, "Sophie's World" when I was a teen, instead of in the early 30's. I've seen some interviews with him and found him to be a nice guy with interesting ideas.

Golden, Arthur - I read and liked very much his best-seller "Memoirs of a Gueisha". While it is a work of fiction, the story is very touching and real. I read it in one shot over a weekend.

Heller, Joseph - Read the classic Catch-22.

Hemingway, Ernest - Read some of his books, including the classic "The old man and the Sea".

Hugo, Victor (*) - When I was about 7 years old, my granfather gave me "Les Miserables" to read. Of course I was too young to read such a book. I started to read it about four times without never finishing. I gave up. Saw the musical, know the story, but will probably never be able to read it.

Huxley, Aldous (*) - His masterpiece of social science fiction "The Brave New World", read for the first time in my college years, together with Orwell's books, ha major influence in my thinking.

Kafka, Franz - I read some of his tense stories. Metamorphosis is one that I remember better.

Kundera, Milan (*) - My favourite contemporary author, read all he wrote. I started reading his books after seeing the movie "The Unbearable Ligthness of Being". Among his books written in Czech, "Immortality" is his best book. He later moved to Paris and started writing in French. His latest books don't have as good stories, but the writing style is still beautiful.

Lahiri, Jhumpa - Her debut short story book "Interpreter of Maladies" won her the 1999 Pulitzer prize. Her stories capture the out-of-context life of first-generation immigrants. Because of that (I am a first generation Brazilian immigrant in US, grandson of Japanese immigrants to Brazil), and because she looks good in the picture of the back cover and because she was born in 1967 and because she writes with a style I try to write, I'm waiting for her next works and might invite her for dinner sometime.

Lee, Harper - Read the classic "To Kill a Mocking Bird" when I first got to the US. It was more a pre-requisite to read American Literature than any other thing.

Lobato, Monteiro (*) - He is one of the classic Brazilian authors of children's books. His works mix fantasy, mitology and history and reports the adventures of Narizinho, Pedrinho and the visconde de Sabugosa in the Sitio do Pica-pau Amarelo. I read everything he wrote in my childhood.

Marquez, Gabriel Garcia - It is a shame that I haven't tried to read it in the original Spanish. Read his books in English and Portuguese. "One Hundred Years of Solitude", "The General in His Labyrinth".

Miller, Henri - "Tropic of Cancer", "Tropic of Capricorn". Don't really know why people think he is important.

Morrison, Toni - "Beloved".

Motta, Nelson - He is a music journalist who lived the 60's and 70's. "Noites Tropicais" is his well-written and interesting memories, telling the history of the late Brazilian music, including the Bossa Nova, the Tropicalism and the rock of the 80s..

Nin, Anais - Old and low-quality erotica  that borders the hilarious.

Orwell, George (*) - "Eighteen Eight Four" and "Animal Farm" are two classic of the social-science fiction. Read them for the first time during college years, major influence in my thinking.

Pessoa, Fernando (*) - Share with Camões the top spot in Portuguese literature. Lived in the 19th century and wrote poetry that is readable today. He wrote under many different pen names, showing different perspectives of his personality and style.

Prata, Mario - A Brazilian TV writer. His "Minhas Mulheres e Meus Homens" are his self-centered and not that interesting memories.

Robbins, Harold - Ok, ok, I read it. But I will deny it if you bring it up.

Sabino, Fernando - One of the best Brazilian writers of short stories ("cronicas"). One of my favourite reading during my pre-teen years.

Saramago, Jose - Literature Nobel Prize. Wrote "Todos os Nomes", the touching story of a Jose nobody and his solitude.

Shakespeare, William - I read most of his works in adaptations to prose and I've seen many of his plays. But I confess that I haven't read more than a few fragments from the originals.

Schlink, Bernhard - Wrote the best-seller "The Reader", a moving, but not very memorable story.

Sheldon, Sydnei - Ok, I confess. I read some of his junk in my college years and... I liked it. I think the "Memories of Midnight" is the one I remember.

Silverstein, Shel - He writes children's poetry that has the power to attract some women. I've thumbed through some of his books, including "Falling Up".

Soares, Jo - A Brazilian TV comedian who also writes some books. While mixing history and fiction is an interesting concept, his books are just entertaining, but not very great. His first best seller is available in English as "A Samba for Sherlock".

Rego, Jose Lins do - While not a real classic of Brazilian literature, I've read some of his books looong time ago and still remember them.

Tolstoi, Leo (*) - I first read "Anna Karenina" because Tereza was carrying it the first time she met Thomas in "Unbearable Lightness of Being". It is dark and hard to read, but good. "War and Peace" is thicker than it is wider and is still in my "to read" stack.

Updike, John - Have tried to read some of his books (including "The Afterlife") but have not been able to finish any.

Verissimo, Erico (*) - A classic Brazilian author, wrote the series "O Tempo e o Vento". "Ana Terra", "Um Certo Capitao Rodrigo", and "Olhai os Lirios do Campo" are a few of the memorable books.

Verissimo, Luis Fernando (*) - He is the best writer of Brazilian short stories (cronicas). He published a lot of junk in his carreer, but "Comedias da Vida Privada" is the best and hilarious collection of cronicas I've ever read.

Verne, Jules (*) - Read all he wrote in my teenager years. "Misterious Island" and "Around the world in 80 days" are the ones I liked the most.

Waller, Robert - His best-seller "The Bridges of Madison County" is the moving story of the unrealized love of Kincaid and Francesca.

Zola, Emile - His "The Masterpiece" is the dark and depressing story of Claude Lantier, a talented artist in Paris of the 19th Century. I did not like the book and it was hard to finish it, but the first chapter is one of the best and most sensuous texts I've ever read. His "Therese Raquin" and "The Debacle" are still in my "to read" stack, but I'm not sure I'll find the motivation to read them.