Description
Widely considered the greatest work by the foremost Brazilian author of the twentieth century, The Double Death of Quincas Water-Bray comes to Penguin Classics in a new translation by the dean of Portuguese-language translators, Gregory Rabassa. It tells the story of Joaquim Soares da Cunha, who drops dead after he abandons his life of upstanding citizenship to assume the identity of Quincas Water-Bray, a "champion drunk" and bum who is whisked along on a postmortem journey that climaxes in his loss at sea.
For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
About the Author
Jorge Leal Amado de Faria (1912 - 2001) was a Brazilian writer of the Modernist school. He was the best-known of modern Brazilian writers, his work having been translated into some 49 languages and popularized in film, notably Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands (Dona Flor e Seus Dois Maridos) in 1978. His work reflects the image of a mestizo Brazil and is marked by religious syncretism. A cheerful and optimistic country and at the same time, with deep social and economic differences. He occupied the 23rd chair of the Brazilian Academy of Letters from 1961 until his death in 2001.
Reviews
"Raucous . . . Rowdy . . . Outrageous!" -The New York Times
"Swift, funny, and occasionally even slapstick." -Rivka Galchen, from the Introduction
"Part Virginia Woolf, part Weekend at Bernie's . . . [An] excellent example of the particular mixture of folkloric elements and high-literary storytelling for which Amado is often paired with Gabriel Garcia Marquez." -The Wall Street Journal
"Hilarious... Deftly constructed... Hugely entertaining... Amado, like Quincas, is a hoaxer who loves to trick his readers.... [His] version of Brazil is seductive." -The Times Literary Supplement
"[A] comic masterpiece . . . Darkly hilarious . . . With brilliant sleight of hand and deceptive simplicity, Amado's defiance of death in this frothy, heartfelt tale reveals the Brazilian master at his earthy, big-hearted best." -Shelf Awareness
Book Information
ISBN 9780143106364
Author Jorge Amado
Format Paperback
Page Count 96
Imprint Penguin Classics
Publisher Penguin Books Ltd
Weight(grams) 85g
Dimensions(mm) 196mm * 131mm * 7mm