Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
A decade of crônicas--short essays and anecdotes--published by Lispector (The Passion According to G.H.) primarily in the Jornal do Brasil from 1967 up to her death in 1977 come together in this rewarding work. Lispector asks in one entry "Is the crônica a story? Is it a conversation? Is it the summation of a state of mind?" and then, in pieces ranging from a few sentences to several pages, she shows the form as all those and more. As she ruminates on the world around her and within herself, Lispector blends casual meditations on the mundane with philosophical reveries on such topics as identity, death, and spirituality. A prime time TV host is absurd and "sadistic," insomnia brings with it loneliness, and "Saturday in the wind is the rose of the week." Lispector also contemplates the act of writing, a process she describes as "remembering the thing that never existed" and "rather like selling your soul." Her prose shifts smoothly from poetic and serious--"The most difficult thing is doing nothing: facing the cosmos alone"--to playful and comedic--"Dear God, who could possibly love her? The answer: dear God." Lispector's fans will relish dipping into these thoughtful musings. (Sept.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
A good place to begin a review of novelist Lispector's crônicas is at the end. In "The Making Of," the final entry of this appealing 750-page compilation of Lispector's short essays, her son, Paulo Gurgel Valente, explains how he came to collect and republish his mother's Jornal do Brasil columns (written between 1967 and 1977), along with her other newspaper submissions. The works of Lispector (1920--77), a Ukrainian-born Brazilian, are now collected in a devotional format for readers, as page after page of thoughts, worries, inspirations, and commentaries. Many of Lispector's columns focus on print newspapers, typewriters, and writing, specifically her theory that a writer cannot give lessons in writing, even when repeatedly asked. Other topics include men, women, sons, maids, cooks, and taxi drivers. Lispector's ruminations on weariness and rage in "Feast and Famine," originally published in 1968, speak to contemporary readers with observations on loving another person, success as a mistake, and the Beatles. VERDICT An excellent collection for readers who enjoy commentaries and observations from a wise, entertaining, realistic writer. Good choice for readers who enjoy essays by Anne Lamott and Ann Patchett.--Joyce Sparrow
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