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Cain
Cain | José Saramago
15 posts | 67 read | 17 to read
“Saramago juxtaposes an eminently readable narrative of work and poverty, class and desire, knowledge and timelessness—one in which God, too, as he faces Cain in the wake of Noah's Ark, emerges as far more human than expected.” —San Francisco Chronicle In this, his last novel, José Saramago daringly reimagines the characters and narratives of the Old Testament, recalling his provocative The Gospel According to Jesus Christ. His tale runs from the Garden of Eden, when God realizes he has forgotten to give Adam and Eve the gift of speech, to the moment when Noah’s Ark lands on the dry peak of Ararat. Cain, the despised, the murderer, is Saramago’s protagonist. Condemned to wander forever after he kills his brother Abel, Cain makes his way through the world in the company of a personable donkey. He is a witness to and participant in the stories of Isaac and Abraham, the destruction of the Tower of Babel, Moses and the golden calf, the trials of Job. The rapacious Queen Lilith takes him as her lover. An old man with two sheep on a rope crosses his path. And again and again, Cain encounters a God whose actions seem callous, cruel, and unjust. He confronts Him, he argues with Him. “And one thing we know for certain,” Saramago writes, “is that they continued to argue and are arguing still.” A startling book—sensual, funny—and in all ways a fitting end to Saramago’s extraordinary career. “A winkingly blasphemous retelling of the Old Testament . . . Saramago, playfully stretching his chatty late style, pokes holes in the stated logic of the Biblical God throughout the novel.” —The New Yorker This e-book includes a sample chapter of BLINDNESS.
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ChaoticMissAdventures
Cain | José Saramago
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Pickpick

#bookspin#bookedintime #YearOfSaramago
Continuing my Saramago reads with this biblical tale. A satire that follows Cain after his fall from grace. I think it is helpful to know the old testament to understand the story here and see the critique he is making, but if you are just looking for a romp through that time this is also a good one for that. Cain is an interesting character to follow and the book is darkly humourous and thought provoking

TheAromaofBooks Great progress!! 6mo
Cuilin Oh wow, sounds great ✅🎉 I haven‘t started the May prompt yet. 6mo
34 likes3 comments
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ChaoticMissAdventures
Cain | José Saramago
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#weeklyforecast
I am about half into Cain and I Was A Teenage Slasher, both quick reads. At 1/3 on The Future which is also a lot about religion which I wasn't prepared for, that is going a bit slower. Hoping to wrap a couple up and start on Light From Uncommon Stars in a couple of days.

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ChaoticMissAdventures
Cain | José Saramago
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#bookspin #doublespin

Second month in a row bookspin hit my author of the year - Jose Saramago, going to try to get to him this month with the shortest of his I own Cain.
Double spin is from the Women's Prize Nonfiction Long List, it looks interesting about geography and more... already have it on hold at the library.

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AshleyHoss820
Cain | José Saramago
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Pickpick

What if the story you know is completely wrong. What if Cain, because of his mark, lived outside the rules, outside of time. What if Cain & God had a theological argument that spanned centuries? This is one of those novels I wish I could read again for the first time. 232/1,001 #1001Books #BookSpin for August #Pop23 A Modern Retelling of a Classic (I‘m stretching it a little, but hey. It‘s my challenge. 😄) #TBRTarot 4th in from Left of Bookshelf

TheAromaofBooks Great progress!! 14mo
CBee You‘re catching up ðŸ‘ðŸ»ðŸ‘ðŸ»ðŸ‘🻠14mo
AshleyHoss820 @CBee Slowly but surely! ðŸ˜‚â˜ºï¸ 14mo
See All 9 Comments
CBee @AshleyHoss820 I meant to mention that I definitely think this book fits for a modern take on a classic. 14mo
AshleyHoss820 @cbee Thank you! I thought, well, you don‘t get more classic than the first murderer in the Bible! 😄 13mo
CBee @AshleyHoss820 exactly! The original classic 😂😂 13mo
AshleyHoss820 @CBee 🤣🤣🤣 13mo
Bookwomble Who was the barber in the Garden of Eden? They did good work! 💇 13mo
AshleyHoss820 @Bookwomble Right!? So fresh! The swoops! 🤣🤣 13mo
31 likes9 comments
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Ididsoidid
Cain | José Saramago
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Mehso-so

What if we have been mistaken and Cain was the good guy all along? A thought provoking theological premise, lots of interesting questions raised but it seemed the plot lost its way whilst wandering in the desert. 6/10

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rory.co
Caino | José Saramago
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Pickpick

Not one of my favourites but I liked it! (The muffin was yummy) 🥰

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Emilymdxn
Cain | José Saramago
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Pickpick

This was completely unlike anything else I‘ve ever read. A totally original, funny, thought provoking, theological fascinating, hallucinatory meander around the Old Testament. I‘m certain this will be one of the best books I read this year. Cain is the most interesting protagonist, I‘ll be thinking about this for a long time.

Freespirit I have just read his book Blindness.. very dark but so engaging. I will put this one on my list to read! 6y
Emilymdxn @freespirit I know almost nothing about him and don‘t know the first fact about any of his other books but I want to try them. I honestly chose this one at random from the 1001 books list 😂 I‘ll give blindness a go and harden my heart for something dark! 6y
Freespirit Yes I think his books are unique...he won the Nobel prize for literature. You won't enjoy Blindness...but it is worth reading! 6y
55 likes3 stack adds3 comments
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Emilymdxn
Cain | José Saramago
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My first Saramago! #1001books

Bookwomble I read my first Saramago last year, his childhood memoirs. 😊 6y
zsuzsanna_reads I didn't really get on with the only book I read by him, 6y
Emilymdxn @Bookwomble I‘ll put it on my list! Thanks! 6y
Emilymdxn @zsuzsanna_reads I might give that one a go since I liked this one so much but I‘ve been told to prepare for something very dark. Looking at it, it looks much less me than Cain and I don‘t know that I‘d like it. I‘ll try others by him first probably (edited) 6y
53 likes4 stack adds4 comments
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Mcoun
Cain / Cain | José Saramago
Pickpick

Into my 6th hour of reading and finished my first book. This is a quirky satire about Cain time-traveling through various Biblical events, in true Saramago form. My favorite scene was when the unicorn missed getting on the ark.

“Contrary to popular belief, the future is already written, it‘s just that we don‘t know how to read the page it‘s written on...â€

#24in48

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Mcoun
Cain / Cain | José Saramago
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Took a break to have breakfast with my sibs. Although I‘m enjoying Dickens‘ Bleak House, I need a break, so I‘m moving to Saramago for a bit.

Hubby keeps interrupting me too! ðŸ™

#24in48

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Gipsy
Caino | José Saramago

Ti sbagli, mai non è il contrario di tardi, il contrario di tardi è troppo tardi, gli rispose Caino.

Caino - José Saramago

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SpringtimeLibrarian
Cain / Cain | José Saramago
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Pickpick

Read this after Death With Interruptions and was not disappointed. A bit more levity and humor, its an inventive, thought-provoking retelling of the story of Cain.

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Mr.Okada
Cain / Cain | José Saramago
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Pickpick

An alternative n truly surreal story of what "actually" happened after that very first day in the Garden of Eden :with its apples and all.
It is also, in more than one sense, a very naked and brutal story.
Cain travelling the old testament questioning the works of God
And in speaking of surreal, its hard not to relate this one to the "story" taking place att 1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW Washington DC 20500, USA.. Read and thou shall find out :)

Mcoun Felt the same way! 6y
5 likes1 comment
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MariaSvane
Cain | José Saramago
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blurb
MariaSvane
Kain: Roman | José Saramago
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