📚: Indian Nocturne, Antonio Tabucchi

What a peculiar and wonderful collection of fragments, quite magical palm-of-the-hand stories.

I think I understand the author’s motivation, echoing Pessoa, but I was expecting a different kind of resolution so I felt a bit let down in the end.

I don’t know how much of this is projection —given my basic familiarity with the author—, but I had a strong feeling of this text being Italian.

I really enjoyed the dialogue in the train (chapter 4). The writing is simple, direct, and the characters feel genuine. I could hear the strong Indian accent of the Jain.

⚠️ Warning: Spoilers

I also enjoyed the magic of the stay at the Hotel Zuari (chapter 9). I like that it leaves a lot implicit, that it weaves a few little puzzles making it clear that they won’t get any answer, that it doesn’t matter —“Who is the receptionist of the Hotel Zuari talking to?”; who is the blonde woman of faded beauty or, said differently, why was the Hotel Zuari pleasant or relevant?

I enjoyed this so much that I immediately ordered another book by Tabucchi, Sostiene Pereira. I’ll try to read it directly in Italian.

I read a translation by Tim Parks —an Italian text translated to English about a journey through India.

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