Order from a Major Online Bookstore
Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine
Save Your Time And Money
| AnyBook4Less.com | Order from a Major Online Bookstore |
|
| Home | Store List | FAQ | Contact Us | | ||
| Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine Save Your Time And Money |
||
 |
Title: Solibo Magnificent by Patrick Chamoiseau, Rose-Myriam Rejouis, Val Vinokurov ISBN: 0-679-75176-9 Publisher: Vintage Books USA Pub. Date: 01 April, 1999 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $13.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.5 (2 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: Chamoiseau deserves a wider audience!
Comment: Patrick Chamoiseau's Solibo Magnificent is a powerful novel, both hilarious and tragic at once. In Fort-de-France, Martinique, Solibo (a Creole nickname meaning somersault or pirouette) has dropped dead in front of some of his followers after uttering a non-sequitor, "That potato!" His band of listeners, believing this to be a part of Solibo's act, wait patiently for the great man to rouse himself. When he doesn't, the police are brought in, and they at once suspect the witnesses , which include the character of the author, of having murdered Solibo. What follows is part slapstick, part theater of the absurb, part philosophy, part tragedy, part magic, all poetry. Somehow Chamoiseaux manages to meld these elements into a coherent whole that makes this novel an extraordinary experience.
As other reviewers have noted, this story is not only about the death and murder investigation of a beloved storyteller, but about the death of the oral tradition in general. Chamoiseau leaves no doubt that he intends the reader to walk away with this notion. Written words are inadequate to describe the power of the spoken; one has only to read the reconstructed version of Solibo's last words at the end of the book to understand this. Despite the somewhat heavy-handed approach to his theme, Chamoiseau tells a riveting story with natural lyricism. (Kudos to the translators!)
This author deserves a much wider readership (or is it audience?)
Rating: 5
Summary: The death of oral tradition
Comment: What a great novel! Chamoiseau manages to create both a rich alleghory on the death of oral tradition, and a keystone cops-style farce. The style and language that Chamoiseau plays with here is a delight to read, and takes on an added weight considering the setting. It's reminiscent of Rushdie's mishmash of Indian and English to make a point in Midnight's Children. Kudos to the translator for not attempting to translate everything in the text. There are footnotes to a glossary, which at first seems daunting, but is very rewarding - I never thought footnotes could lead to so much laughter (I take that back, D.F. Wallace). Ultimately, this book is a love affair of language. Enjoy!
 |
Title: Texaco by Patrick Chamoiseau, Rose-Myriam Rejouis, Val Vinokurov ISBN: 0679751750 Publisher: Vintage Books USA Pub. Date: 01 March, 1998 List Price(USD): $15.00 |
 |
Title: Krik? Krak! (Vintage Contemporaries) by Edwidge Danticat ISBN: 067976657X Publisher: Vintage Books USA Pub. Date: 01 April, 1996 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
 |
Title: The Wretched of the Earth by Frantz Fanon ISBN: 0802150837 Publisher: Grove Press Pub. Date: 01 June, 1965 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
 |
Title: Creole Folktales by Patrick Chamoiseau, Linda Coverdale ISBN: 1565843967 Publisher: New Press Pub. Date: 01 September, 1997 List Price(USD): $10.00 |
 |
Title: The Dark Child by Camara Laye, James Kirkup, Ernest Jones ISBN: 080901548X Publisher: Farrar Straus Giroux Pub. Date: 01 June, 1994 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
Thank you for visiting www.AnyBook4Less.com and enjoy your savings!
Copyright� 2001-2021 Send your comments
