In an unnamed country, death stops working on the first day of the new year. There is joy at first, but society soon feels the cost: hospitals are full of dying people who cannot die, funeral homes and insurance companies lose business, and the Church sees its doctrine undermined. Some families take their dying relatives over the border to a place where death still works. When death returns, now as a woman who warns people a week in advance by letter, one letter keeps coming back unclaimed. Saramago explores this with irony and a long, unbroken style.
Readers who like philosophical satire will enjoy the premise. It suits those who like Saramago's other work, or who want an entry point into his tone of dark humor and tenderness.
Deep, contemplative, open-ended and thought-provoking; a moderate read.
Best for readers like The Wisdom Collector. Which reader are you?
- Published
- 2005
- Publisher
- Editorial Caminho
- ISBN
- 9789722117388
- Language
- PT
