Reviews

Água Viva by Clarice Lispector

ana_qq's review against another edition

4.0

Vista por um corte oblíquo. Só agora pressenti o oblíquo da vida. Antes só via através de cortes retos e paralelos. Não percebia o sonso traço enviesado. Agora adivinho que a vida é outra. Que viver não é só desenrolar sentimentos grossos - é algo mais sortilégico e mais grácil, sem por isso perder o seu fino vigor animal.

Ler Clarice Lispector é como entrar num mundo paralelo. Parecido com este nosso mas onde tudo está ligeiramente deslocado, oblíquo. É necessário algum esforço mental de adaptação à leitura. O tempo se dilata e se contrai e o universo cabe no instante. As trevas são interiores, e o terror e o êxtase convivem solidariamente na mesma frase como nas coisas banais da vida. Nada assusta.

caitlinorlaeve's review

inspiring mysterious reflective

5.0

kissabook's review against another edition

challenging hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad fast-paced

4.5

stinkylilbaby's review against another edition

emotional inspiring mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Definitely my favorite of Lispecters works that I have read. Sometimes hard to read (due to the string of thoughts and plotless narrative), she is able to weave the audience through decorated visions of how beautiful life is. Many underlined quotes in this book that I hope to always remember. LOVE U CLARICE 🩷

sstalitass's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

4.0

jenniey3's review against another edition

3.0

In Portuguese, água viva means jellyfish, but the phrase directly translates to "living water". That is the part of the book that makes the most sense, as jellyfish are shapeless creatures, moving with the water. This here is a shapeless book, bending with the currents of life.

This novel has no plot, no characters, and no atmosphere. It is a loosely formed slew of thoughts about writing, art, and life. It is a continuous stream of consciousness as Clarice tries to capture the very instant, the now. There is no structure to her thoughts and she aimlessly meanders from subject to subject, paragraph to paragraph. The entire book was an experience and it has never taken me so long to read and dissect a piece of literature under 100 pages. Clarice has almost humbled me. Almost.

I especially enjoyed her take on writing:
"I know that my phrases are crude, I write them with too much love, and that love makes up for their faults..."

Overall, the book feels equal parts Lana, Matty, and Sufjan

azeemahpop's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

fcty's review against another edition

5.0

my first lispector (that i’ve finished - i read some of near to the wild heart last year, stopped for too long and couldn’t get back into it). the only reason im not giving this a full 5 stars is because i think this is the sort of book that needs to be reread many times for it to fully sink in, bc i will admit that i was a bit lost at points. it’s not the easiest read, but i think lispector’s intention was for the reader to feel her prose the way one feels music or painting. the best stream-of-consciousness style of writing i read so far; any other author who tries to do what she’s doing here would come across as unfocused, disorganised, or weak. so many banger lines in here, like this one:

I must take the plunge all at once, a plunge that includes comprehension and especially incomprehension. And who am I to dare to think? What I have to do is surrender.

cant wait to read more from her!

edit: 5 stars why not

logrhys's review against another edition

challenging reflective slow-paced

4.75

bcuzcoda's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective

4.5