The Tale of the Unknown Island

A must read for all Saramago and Iberic lit enthusiasts. It took me 1 hour to read it from cover to cover for the first time. I took a lot longer the second time. Saramago packs so much message in such a short tale it's nuts. Definitely two thumbs up.

Bueno, Que saramago es un escritor muy especial, Con un ojo bionico que transpasa muchas barreras. No lo he descubierto yo.Este libro, es un cortito cuento. Muy interesante.Con moraleja. Aunque no tan clara.Basicamente, una descripcion de como la gente, sueña con objetivos. Y en cuanto estan encaminados hacia estos. Se asustan. Y buscan diferentes pretextos para escapar.Un buen cuentito , Recomendado, para todos aquellos que estan en duda si seguir sus sueños del corazon.O si seguir los del bolsillo, de las comodidades y del confort. (que no te deja pensar.).Comprenlo, aguante saramago. Un Grande.Leandro Gonzalez.Miami , Florida. (pero nacido en argentina).

I read this book in maybe 20 minutes, but it was the most enjoyable 20 minutes that I have ever spent reading a book. Now, I'm not going to write a long, flourishing review that the people before me have done, because I'm a teenage girl that really isnt into writting reveiws, but I am going to tell you that it is one of the most beautiful books I have ever read. Jose Saramago has a way of writting that just captures you. There are no quotation marks, and few periods. None of the characters have birth names, but I felt that things like "The king, the cleaning lady, and the man" where perfect enough. I even read it outloud, and gave everyone a voice, imagining that I was there with them. It was really quite a marvelous read, and I encourage anyone to read it. Do it for yourself - you and your mind deserve it :)

Besides clearly stating a critique of beaurocracy I think Saramago goes deeper to tell us other things. No man is an island said once John Donne. Is he or is he not? On the one hand man seems complete in itself, he and he alone posseses the mental energy to materialize his own dreams. On the other hand we see that once man has the basic elements to achieve his dream he starts destroying it by creating all sorts of pretexts and obstacles that interfere with its realization. Man asked the King for a ship to go in search of his island, once the King has granted him his wish, man is suddenly seen defeating his own perseverance and ilusion as he expresses doubt and fear of possible disasters that the realization of the dream may bring to him. Then there is the cleaning woman who firmly trespassed "the decision door" of the palace demonstrating her will to change HER reality and it is ultimately this woman who encourages the man to continue in his quest..So, Donne's appreciation stands solidly. Man is THE unknown island, yet in a very short, fast reading book (very unlike Saramago, since his books are usually quite lengthy)we are drawn to realize how very much we still need each other when achieving anything.

This short fable is a wonderful metaphor for courage and seeking the impossible dream, for searching for the unknown islands in our lives even if we are certain we have discovered them all. The man in this simple, yet philisophical story inspires bold courage to dream inspite of obstacles, to remain determined in spite of skeptism and ultimately to find one true love. A very sweet ending. Truly an exceptional short read. I'll read it aloud to my family and friends over and over and like it more each time.