The Double Death of Quincas Water-Bray

by Jorge Amado

Book Overview

A Penguin Classic 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...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0143106368
• ISBN13: 9780143106364
• Release Date: August 2012
• Publisher: Penguin Group
• Length: 96 Pages
• Weight: 0.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.1" x 7.8"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Great book

This story, and the story "Forest Gump" are two of the best and most entertaining works of short fiction I have ever read. A real gem, and a delightful insight into Brazillian culture and humor.

Interesting book

This was my first foray into contemportay Brazilian fiction. Amado wove a short tale -- a fairy tale or fable -- with great ease and artistry. The descriptions of the characters and the setting fill the imagination with sights and sounds and "characters" of all types. Loved the illustrations. Facinating artwork. This was a pleasure to read.

"imbricated in Magical Realism,mixture of dream and reality"

Jorge Amado (1912-2001) is one of Brazil's most famous writers, and in this little book we are able to realize why he has such recognition. "The Two Deaths of Quincas Wateryell" is a translation of one of his shortest but more original books, "A morte e a morte de Quincas Berro D'Água", first published in 1958. The author is part of a movement in Brazilian literature that was called "regionalism", mainly characterized because each one of the authors strived to write about his region, and tried to incorporate in his works words closely related to the local speech. Amado does just that, and in his books we can see a little of his beloved "Bahia". He deliberately ignores orthographic and grammatical rules, and adds in his written work expressions that so far could only be found in informal conversations. Amado wrote for everybody, in a language that the average person in Bahia, and Brazil, understood. He loved to be considered a "story-teller", rather than a "serious" writer that wrote only for a few. I read this book for the first time during a course I attended regarding "A Literatura brasileira através dos contos". Most of the students (myself included) thought that "A morte e a morte de Quincas Berro D'Água" was only a long story. Our professor, Adriana Almeida, told us that it was a novel, due to the fact that it includes a lot of parallel stories and coexisting dramatic incidents, among other reasons.But... What is this book about?. An essay that I liked a lot says that the action is, in this book "nitidamente imbricada no Realismo Mágico, mistura sonho e realidade; loucura e racionalidade; amor e desamor..." ("nitidly imbricated in Magical Realism, mixture of dream and reality; craziness and rationality; love and hate..."). I can only dream of saying something more accurate... You can find all that, an much more, in the few pages that compound this book. Yes, "A morte e a morte de Quincas Berro D'Água" is about the two deaths of a person (possibly three deaths?), and about how a person can change dramatically his life, if he wishes to do so.After reading "A morte e a morte de Quincas Berro D'Água" you will be able to decide by yourself who was happier, and who led a better life, if Joaquim Soares da Cunha or Quincas Berro D'Água. Any opinion is valid, as far as you can give reasons for it.On the whole, I strongly recommend this book, as an excellent example of the kind of work that a really gifted author can write. If you can, try to read this book in portuguese. If you are unable to do so, read a translation, because even if you won't appreciate all the subtle shades of meaning and feeling that can only be grasped in the original language, you will still enjoy it a lot.Belen Alcat

The best Companion for a Lecture Night

This is a very short, unpretentious book. Nevertheless, inside it there lies the essence of brazilian culture. I read this book firstly when I was 14, and I enjoyed it quite a lot. Now I have been reading it again, and I can tell you that it is one of the good books I have read throughout my life. If you are a little (you only need to be very little) interested in Brazil, or in having some pleasant hours of reading, I strongly advise you to buy it.