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A review by gxcons
You Dreamed of Empires by Álvaro Enrigue
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.5
“When somebody puts what's happening to us now in a book, he said, they'll think it's more chivalric romance bullshit.”
This is a trippy reimagining of the meeting of the Spanish and the "Aztec" empire. There are so many elements to the story- dark humor, lush descriptions of Tenochtitlan, a full cast of both Spanish and native characters, tense politics, modern allusions, meta touches- but it doesn't feel overcrowded. It also doesn't feel like I can give a comprehensive overview of this book, either.
At times, I wondered just how dreamy this must sound in Spanish, but I think the English rendering was well done. The note to English readers at the beginning was helpful re: pronunciation and certain translation (Nahuatl to Spanish to English) choices. This note and the list of characters, both Spanish and Native, makes me raise any eyebrow at some of the criticisms regarding difficult to pronounce names or not being able to keep track of only one side's group of characters.
While we, modern readers, do not know if a meeting between Cortes and Moctezuma occurred, it may not be out of the realm of possibility, and this book brings to the forefront just how many of our ideas of this particular region of the world at this point in history are influenced by the European POV.
4.5 stars, my favorite read of 2024 so far!
This is a trippy reimagining of the meeting of the Spanish and the "Aztec" empire. There are so many elements to the story- dark humor, lush descriptions of Tenochtitlan, a full cast of both Spanish and native characters, tense politics, modern allusions, meta touches- but it doesn't feel overcrowded. It also doesn't feel like I can give a comprehensive overview of this book, either.
At times, I wondered just how dreamy this must sound in Spanish, but I think the English rendering was well done. The note to English readers at the beginning was helpful re: pronunciation and certain translation (Nahuatl to Spanish to English) choices. This note and the list of characters, both Spanish and Native, makes me raise any eyebrow at some of the criticisms regarding difficult to pronounce names or not being able to keep track of only one side's group of characters.
While we, modern readers, do not know if a meeting between Cortes and Moctezuma occurred, it may not be out of the realm of possibility, and this book brings to the forefront just how many of our ideas of this particular region of the world at this point in history are influenced by the European POV.
4.5 stars, my favorite read of 2024 so far!