I saw a man under the spell of his own tale, a snake charmer whose serpent has become his turban. I'm not sure how I want to use the above quote, which comes late in the book, but I just liked it and so decided to start this post with it. Bear with me! Discounting … Continue reading Abraham Verghese, Cutting for stone
Dictator novels
Mario Vargas Llosa, The feast of the Goat
If Nobel Laureate Mario Vargas Llosa's The feast of the goat had been a traditional historical novel, chances are it would have started with the assassins concocting their plan and then worked chronologically to its logical conclusion. But, it is not a traditional historical novel, as is reflected in the structure Vargas Llosa has chosen to tell his … Continue reading Mario Vargas Llosa, The feast of the Goat