clockwise
Distinguished Member
- Joined
- Apr 22, 2010
- Messages
- 1,402
- Reaction score
- 42
Clockwise counting 91/50: Juan Gabriel Vasquez - The Sound of Things Falling (2011)
Vasquez is the big star of new Colombian fiction. This is far from magic realism but still with a dreamlike quality to the story. Our protagonist is the law professor Antonio who accidentally gets shot and seriously injured in the assassination of his friend Ricardo. Antonio becomes obsessed with the "why" and goes to great lengths to find out Ricardo's background. The downfall of Ricardo, going back a couple of decades, turns out to have set in motion a chain of events which affected many people disastrously.
The backdrop of the novel is the terror of Pablo Escobar's Medellin-based drug empire in the 1980s, the war on drugs and the rural poverty of Colombia. Reading the first half of this novel, I thought it quite mediocre albeit well written; after the second half and the astonishing revelations towards the end, I realise why it is has received such good reviews. It leaves a lasting impression on the reader and I would recommend it.
Vasquez is the big star of new Colombian fiction. This is far from magic realism but still with a dreamlike quality to the story. Our protagonist is the law professor Antonio who accidentally gets shot and seriously injured in the assassination of his friend Ricardo. Antonio becomes obsessed with the "why" and goes to great lengths to find out Ricardo's background. The downfall of Ricardo, going back a couple of decades, turns out to have set in motion a chain of events which affected many people disastrously.
The backdrop of the novel is the terror of Pablo Escobar's Medellin-based drug empire in the 1980s, the war on drugs and the rural poverty of Colombia. Reading the first half of this novel, I thought it quite mediocre albeit well written; after the second half and the astonishing revelations towards the end, I realise why it is has received such good reviews. It leaves a lasting impression on the reader and I would recommend it.