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From a Nobel Prize winner: "A psychological, even metaphysical thriller that will keep you turning the pages . . . with growing alarm and alacrity." —The Seattle Times
A Washington Post Book World Favorite Book of the Year
Senhor José is a low-grade clerk in the city's Central Registry, where the living and the dead share the same shelf space. A middle-aged bachelor, he has no interest in anything beyond the certificates of birth, marriage, divorce, and death that are his daily routine. But one day, when he comes across the records of an anonymous young woman, something happens to him. Obsessed, Senhor José sets off to follow the thread that may lead him to the woman—but as he gets closer, he discovers more about her, and about himself, than he would ever have wished. The loneliness of people's lives, the effects of chance, the discovery of love—all coalesce in this extraordinary novel that displays the power and art of José Saramago in brilliant form.
Quotes
From WikiquoteYou know the name you were given, You do not know the name you have
The caressing, melodious tones of humility and flattery never sang in the ears of the clerk Senhor José, these have never had a place in the chromatic scale of feelings normally shown to him.
[...], indeed nothing so tires a person as having to struggle, not with himself, but with an abstraction.
None of his colleagues noticed who had arrived, they responded to his greetings as they always did, Good morning, Senhor José, they said and they did not know to whom they were speaking.
More by José Saramago
All books-
Memoriaal van een kloosterJosé SaramagoMemoriaal van een kloosterJosé Saramago
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Opgestaan van de grondJosé SaramagoOpgestaan van de grondJosé Saramago
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De stad der blinden & De stad der ziendenJosé SaramagoDe stad der blinden & De stad der ziendenJosé Saramago
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SeeingJosé SaramagoSeeingJosé Saramago
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BlindnessJosé SaramagoBlindnessJosé Saramago
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BovenlichtJosé SaramagoBovenlichtJosé Saramago
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De man in duploJosé SaramagoDe man in duploJosé Saramago
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De stad der blindenJosé SaramagoDe stad der blindenJosé Saramago
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De stad der ziendenJosé SaramagoDe stad der ziendenJosé Saramago
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Kleine herinneringenJosé SaramagoKleine herinneringenJosé Saramago
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Het stenen vlotJosé SaramagoHet stenen vlotJosé Saramago
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The Gospel According to Jesus ChristJosé SaramagoThe Gospel According to Jesus ChristJosé Saramago
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The CaveJosé SaramagoThe CaveJosé Saramago
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The NotebookJosé SaramagoThe NotebookJosé Saramago
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Ensaio Sobre a Cegueira1995Ensaio Sobre a Cegueira
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Todos os nomes1997Todos os nomes
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