What are you reading: " TRUST by Hernan Diaz"

Marta Moreno's contribution

 The Book & The Author

Wikipedia

TRUST by HERNAN DIAZ. When I first heard about Trust in the New York Times 100 Best Books of the 21st Century, I felt intrigued by the fact that an Argentinian writer had won the Pulitzer Prize with a novel written in English. I bought it a few days later and left it to sleep on a bookshelf. 

I have always felt fascinated by those who live between two languages and those who feel more at home writing in a language that is not their mother tongue. This is the case of Joseph Conrad, who apparently was hard to understand when speaking because he had such a thick Polish accent. And nowadays we have the example of Junot Diaz, whose novel The Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao drifts seamlessly from Spanish to English and back. On the other side of the spectrum, Benjamin Labatut has chosen to write Un verdor terrible and Maniac in Spanish but he could perfectly have written these books in English. However, in his own words, they would have been totally different. Far from comparing myself with such geniuses, I’d say that I often find it easier to express myself in English than in Spanish when it comes to writing, and I feel that my voice is definitely different in each language.

I imagined Diaz as the child of immigrants who spent most of his life in the US, but in this I was mistaken. It’s true that his parents had to flee the Argentinian dictatorship when he was very little,  seeking asylum in Sweden. This is how he ended up growing up bilingual, speaking Spanish at home and Swedish at school and in the rest of his everyday life. One day a novel in English fell into his hands and he fell unexpectedly in love with American literature. Little by little, with the help of a dictionary he followed the story and this was the beginning of his lifelong passion. 

Hernan Diaz studied English Literature in Argentina, where his family returned in the 1980s, continued his studies at King’s College London and, to cut a long story short, became a professor at Columbia University in New York.

Amazon

When finally I picked up Trust this summer, I found myself immediately absorbed in a tale that reminded me of the great classics. The book, which  tells the story of the richest man in the world and his problematic relationship with his wife, is divided into four parts: the first one is a novel inside the novel, the second the notes for an autobiography written by somebody who reminds us of the main character of the first part, the third the memoirs of the secretary who helped write the autobiography, and the fourth the journal of the other key character, the wife. Only when reaching the end will we be able to put all the pieces of the puzzle together and pass judgment on each of the characters. 

The book can be obscure sometimes, especially when it gets into detail about the financial operations that make the protagonist amass his legendary wealth. If you are familiar with this field, this will surely add to the enjoyment of this masterpiece. If not, as it was my case, it will not stop you from relishing every single line of this novel. 

November 22 Meeting, "Pharmacy" by Elizabeth Strout

 For November Meeting we recover the post published this summer with Marta's recommendation about a book by Elizabeth Strout in the "What are you reding?" section.

The text to read in November is the first chapter of the book, entitled "Pharmacy".

Amazon

 Marta's contribution.

I heard about this Pulitzer winner thanks to an article in the Guardian in which men recommended books written by women. Filmmaker Michael Curtis spoke so highly of this book that I decided to read the first chapter in Amazon's Look Inside. I was immediately captured by the story of Henry Kitteridge, a warm-hearted pharmacist who happened to be Olive's husband. I decided to read the whole book and, to my surprise, it wasn't a novel as such but a collection of short stories in which Olive appears, mostly as a secondary character, sometimes as the main one. Little by little, we are given the pieces of the puzzle that represents Olive's complex personality.

This is a very well-crafted book which probably deserves the prize it received, and the author is a deep observer of human nature. However, all the stories are extremely sad, as if the author's goal were to prove the impossibility of constructing fully satisfying relationships, no matter your character. To put it bluntly, it depressed me to the core.

On the upside, I think it would be a perfect book to discuss in the book club, as it gives the reader plenty of space to reach their own conclusions.

My recommendation would be to read the first chapter, The pharmacist, no matter whether you read the rest or not.

Happy reading!

Other links related to the book

Illustration: Lalalimola/The Guardian

> The Guardian - Books by women that every man should read: chosen by Ian McEwan, Salman Rushdie, Richard Curtis and more

> Amazon - Olive Kitteridge: The Beloved Pulitzer Prize-Winning Novel (English Edition)

> Elizabeth Strout - official website

> Elizabeth Strout - Books: Olive Kitteridge

> Youtube - Olive Kitteridge - Trailer - Official HBO UK

A look at the decisive women's role during the Second World War, which will help us to visualize the atmosphere of the book "The Guernsey Society"

 Click on the link below to visit the website

What did you do in the war, mum?

War Mum

A comprehensive work created by B2 students about the role of  British women during World War II. It might help you understand some of the things that happen in the book.

On the following web page, you will find the true history of the evacuated children in Guernsey.

                                                                                                         Marta's contribution

The History Press - Guernsey’s evacuees

The History Press

What is a "Jerry Bag"?   

Jersey Occupation: 'My mother slept with the enemy'

BBC News - World - Worl War II

Jerry (n.) Online Etymology Dictionary

World War I British Army slang for "a German; the Germans," 1919, probably an alteration of German based on the male nickname Jerry, popular form of Jeremy. But it also is said to be from the shape of the German helmet, which was thought to resemble a jerry, British slang for "chamber pot, toilet" (1850), this being probably an abbreviation of jeroboam, which is attested in this sense from 1827. Compare jerry-hat "round felt hat" (1841).

Source: Online Etymology Dictionary

1939 - 1945 Ravensbrück concentration camp

© 2021 Stiftung Brandenburgische Gedenkstätten

Noelia's contribution