Los enamoramientos

A young woman (30-ish) works in a publishing house in Madrid. She has coffee every morning and for several years overhears conversations of a couple with their two young children who frequent the same café. They never interact but she thinks of them as “the perfect couple.” She doesn’t know it yet but they notice her too and call her “the prudent young woman.” One day she sees in the newspaper that the married man was murdered by a crazy knife-wielding homeless man. Sometime later she [...]

A murderer, nothing more.Truth is not always an easy thing to come by. Any event that occurs reaches our ears and eyes from a vast assortment of new media, eyewitnesses, and other second-hand accounts, each with their own unique perspectives and agendas that all encode the same message into infinitely variable packages of information. We all become amateur detectives, sifting through the various accounts to decipher what we choose to believe, and thus creating our own unique perspectives of an e [...]

I was moving this week, so I'm farther away from this than I wanted to be when I wrote this, but I can assure you that the strongest of my impressions have lasted enough to give you the gist of why I was so disappointed in this.My major issue is, overall, that this is the sort of book that gives literary fiction a bad name. This is exactly the sort of thing that is the basis for pretension puncturing parodies with melodramatic lighting and unnecessarily florid language that people point to when [...]

"The Infatuations", written by Spanish writer, Javier Marias, begins with a murder. It's brilliantly and seductively written - with mesmerizing passages on every page. There was even a very powerful passage about a mother - who clearly loves her children - but just can't cope with them at the moment - wishes she didn't have to - as they weighed too much on her. Her husband was dead - with two small children ---( this passage went on - powerfully - for pages). I thought about my mother, when I, t [...]

With a delicately eerie depth of intelligence and using a hypnotic style Javier Marías weaves a skillful and deceiving story set in the heart of modern Madrid involving a murder, the reasons for, and the aftermath. But for anyone hoping for a thrilling crime mystery you will end up disappointed, and I feel some negative reviews are not wholly the fault of the book itself, but rather people are to believe it's something along those lines when clearly it is not. This is not a thriller, no where n [...]

You could say that I wished them all the best in the world, as if they were characters in a novel or a film for whom one is rooting right from the start, knowing that something bad is going to happen to them, that at some point, things will go horribly wrong, otherwise there would be no novel or film. They were the brief, modest spectacle that lifted my mood before I went to work at the publishing house to wrestle with my megalomaniac boss and his horrible authors.So is the sentiment expressed b [...]

It’s quite shameful the way reality imposes no limits on itself.The questions about life and death are quite contrasting. While we hardly ask about how someone is born, the news of someone’s death is almost always followed by the question of How. Apart from satiating our curiosity and mellow down the shock of the news, there is a sense of relief we try to find in the answers. And to be honest, such news is not always unpleasant especially when the death is caused due to some natural causes; [...]

Una novela literaria que requiere un lector atento. Tiene suspenso, pero el argumento es lo de menos, lo que más interesa es la filosofía del autor.

Onvan : Los enamoramientos - Nevisande : Javier MarÌ_as - ISBN : 8420407135 - ISBN13 : 9788420407135 - Dar 401 Safhe - Saal e Chap : 2011

God, I love reading. A good novel one of the greatest pleasures that we get in this life, and fuck you everyone who helped me forget that, and God bless you Javier Marías for making me remember.Okay, so I just invoked the Lord's name twice in one small paragraph, which must mean I'm a bit worked up. I don't know if I can convey how much I enjoyed this book, but beyond that, what a profound relief it was for me to enjoy it so much, now.I'm coming up on the closing end of an MFA program. While in [...]

A Gender of Her OwnMarias' first person narrator is a woman, Maria (with neither his accent, his "s" nor his balls).It's tempting to read this novel, preoccupied by the search for evidence that this is a foolish narrative device (e.g the fear that we might find sentences like "a gust of cold air made my nipples hard," which, rest assured, doesn't appear within!). However, such a quest would really only deprive the reader of the pleasure of the text.It's true that the novel reads very much like M [...]

I had such high hopes for this. The reviews have been glowing. Everyone seemed to be talking about it. And I've been trying to read more translations. At first the premise and subject matter seemed promising - and the first few extended conversations were quite interesting.But then Blah blah blah. Blah Blah Blah Blah. Blah Blah Blah. The talking and talking and talking and then thinking (internal talking) and more talking and more talking. Please - I'm drowning in the middle of sentences that a [...]

I love reading novels that form vigorously divided yes/no camps among my favorite reviewers. It immediately intrigues me when I see frenzied entreaties to read something coupled with impassioned panning, especially when these differences of opinion aren't easily equated to simple individual stylistic tastes, like "the oft-seen tendency of some post-modern writers to indulge in long-winded tangents over emotional minutia disrupts the flow of the narrative for me to an insurmountable extent" or "H [...]

Withdrawn from South Dublin Libraries - Clondalkin BranchTranslated by Margaret Jull CostaDescription: The Infatuations is a metaphysical murder mystery and a stunningly original literary achievement by Javier Marías, the internationally acclaimed author of A Heart So White and Your Face Tomorrow.Every day, María Dolz stops for breakfast at the same café. And every day she enjoys watching a handsome couple who follow the same routine. Then one day they aren't there, and she feels obscurely be [...]

I know. I know you are looking at those stars and saying "Tja. Typical." But let me plead clemency by claiming somewhere between three and four and to be highly recommended by such reviews as:this, (forthcoming) from the Marias Man of the Moment;this, a discerning and appreciative reflection; andthis (undoubtedly) scholarly and analytical appraisal.If even half of what is printed in the name of publishing were of the quality of Marias' prose, laments about the dearth of decent reading material w [...]

2,5/5"Μια νουβέλα είναι, και ό,τι συμβαίνει στις νουβέλες και στα μυθιστορήματα δεν έχει σημασία και λησμονιέται μόλις τα τελειώσει κανείς."Δε θα μπορούσα να το πω καλύτερα από ό,τι ο ίδιος ο Μαρίας. Πραγματικά, προβλέπω ότι με το που τελείωσα αυτό το βιβλίο θα το ξεχάσω, είναι β [...]

You guys oh no I accidentally abandoned this book. I mean, it wasn't actually an accident; I just came to the unignorable conclusion after 90ish pages that opening this book had become like being in one of those dreams where every part of your body is SO HEAVY that you can't even wiggle a single toe. Every time I thought about picking this up, suddenly I was rearranging the condiments in my fridge or mindlessly scrolling through Instagrams I'd already looked at like four times. And I can't even [...]

They sat here before. The Chambers. Awash in the overheated humidity, pomade, the dense artificial freshening scent. Moments before, an objection had been raised out there.So, Sam, whatwhat can you give me?"Gruesome over here objected to my objection.You know he's right Ned. You can't object to an objection. If I were to allow that then one of you would object to that and the objections would go on until we could no more see them. I'm still not sure what your case is Sam. He rolled out his arms [...]

Javier Marías tiene un estilo muy particular. Tengo la suerte de conectar perfectamente con él, y la lectura de sus obras se me hace rapidísima e interesante. Conozco a gente que nunca ha podido acabar un libro suyo. Como siempre, al hilo de una historia, Marías aprovecha para la reflexión y analiza aspectos cotidianos de la vida que me hacen decir constantemente "eso ya lo había pensado yo". Sus reflexiones, su lógica, se parecen tanto a la mía, que me parece estar escuchando mi propio [...]

É uma narrativa belíssima que nos absorve e nos evola que parte de uma temática, para muitos inabordável que, quando surge como assunto de conversa entre um grupo, torna-se para essas pessoas tema dilacerante, evitável, onde sempre haverá alguém que dirá “mudemos de assunto”, porque todos os temas da condição humana podem e devem ser discutidos, analisados, criticados ou sintetizados nas suas definições mais banais, menos aquele que, talvez de tão certo, de tão presente, de tã [...]

Marías chooses a female character, Maria, to narrate this European-style psychological thriller with a slow reveal that turns on a dime in the final chapters. Maria works in a publishing company and every day on her break from work she sees an intriguing couple, married, having coffee together. They look so happy and in love that Maria finds herself looking forward to seeing them in the coffee shop. Sometimes she overhears scraps of conversation and pieces together a life for them without them [...]

Çağdaş İspanyol yazar Javier Marias'tan okuduğum ilk kitap oldu bu roman. Derin, felsefi bir aşk ve cinayet romanı. Aslında bu tanım da kitabın tam hakkını vermiyor. Müthiş bir tempoda başlıyor, okuyanı içine çekiyor ve daha sonra farklı katmanlar içinde yaşamın ve ölümün anlamı, ölenin ardında kalanların yaşam tercihleri, duygusal ilişkilerdeki eşitsizlikler, işlenen suçların nasıl hasıraltı edilebildiği veya haklı gösterilebildiği gibi kavramlar üzer [...]

Eğer bir ölü (sevdiğimiz bir kişi) geri dönecek olursa tavrımız ne olur? Onsuz hayata belki de tekrar başlamışken, onsuzluğa alışmışken, onun ölümünden ötürü maddi durumumuz belki de hatırı sayılır derecede iyileşmişken, kendimize onsuz bir hayat kurmuşken Sevinir miyiz, şaşırır mıyız, sevinçten havalara mı uçarız; yoksa tüm dengemiz bozulur mu? Tabii ki roman sadece bundan ibaret değil. Javier Marias gerçekten çok güçlü bir yazar." Ve dönecek bile [...]

L’attesa nutre e potenzia il desiderioPer prima cosa un dubbio, è credibile l'io narrante? E' credibile come donna? Ero condizionato dal sapere che non lo fosse e che in realtà si trattasse di Javier Marìas?Non ho avuto modo di pensarci a lungo perchè sono stato sedotto. Mi sono trovato immerso nella narrazione, irretito come era avvenuto con “Domani nella battaglia pensa a me". Marìas è abile nel descrivere l'articolarsi dei pensieri, il flusso di coscienza, almeno quanto lo è Steinb [...]

o un 4,5.Es el primer libro de Javier Marías que leo, pero no será el último. Su forma de escribir, o más bien de reflexionar, me ha conquistado. Desde luego, es un libro denso, lento y profundo, para leer con tranquilidad. No es una novela de hechos (ni siquiera sé si es verdaderamente una novela) si no de pensamientos, de largas reflexiones. Su título induce a pensar que es un libro sobre el amor, y lo es, pero también lo es, incluso en mayor medida, sobre la muerte, la pérdida, el lut [...]

Niente è come appareÈ stata una lettura faticosa per me, tanto che, almeno in un primo momento, pensavo di attribuire a questo libro soltanto tre stelle: lento, in più punti noioso, tremendamente e forse, in vari capitoli, inutilmente prolisso.Poi, all’improvviso, più o meno a metà, la narrazione si è ripresa - anche abbastanza bene, devo riconoscere - e le pagine hanno iniziato a scivolare una dopo l’altra, incalzate dalla mia curiosa ingordigia di leggere come sarebbe andata a finire [...]

Snervata. Non so se si può dire in italiano, ma è lo stato d'animo che provo alla conclusione della lettura di questo romanzo.Mi vien da dire, un'icona del pensiero "pipponico".Allora non che non gli riconosca un indubbio pregio, ma dipende poi molto dal temperamento di chi legge. Non ci puoi mettere cinquanta pagine per passare, in un dialogo tra due persone, da una battuta alla battuta successiva, riempiendo lo spazio di riflessioni e congetture, e sì va beh, a volte anche di pensieri profo [...]

In the year 1955, the year that I was born, another man died. The dead man was named José Ortega y Gasset. For those who knew him, Gasset was a writer of essays, a man of fashion often sporting a cigarette holder in his left hand. To ward of the Iberian sun he was often seen wearing a white straw hat sitting a touch high on his close cropped hair, as if the hat had been bought one size too small. His was the smile of a man who had seen too much; glittering eyes that had observed his country osc [...]

Questo è il periodo dei libri a fagiolo quelli che fanno tanto male ma anche tanto bene. Ennesimo caso.Perché Marìas può fare tanto male ma anche tanto bene.Provatelo anche voiE siate ancora più consapevoli della potenza degli innamoramenti

Os Enamoramentos foram o "meu primeiro" Javier Marías. E não podia ter começado melhor pois o sentimento que me arrancou a sua leitura foi o de um enamoramento sem reservas!O que me fascinou desde logo, foi o facto de o autor dar mostras de conhecer tão bem os meandros da alma feminina com esta potente narradora, a Maria Dolz, a minha favorita!E também me convenceram as referências excelentes à literatura francesa do Séc. XIX, com Dumas e Balzac, que revisitei com agrado.Venham mais livr [...]