A review by kilburnadam
Empty Words by Mario Levrero

5.0

Empty Words is a novel by Uruguayan author Mario Levrero, written in diary format, that follows the narrator's attempts to improve his handwriting as a form of self-therapy. Through diligent daily practice, the narrator hopes to alter his personality, but he struggles with distractions and frustrations from daily life. The novel is split into two parts: "Exercises" and "The Empty Discourse." The former involves free writing aimed at therapeutic reconciliation, while the latter focuses on the narrator's attempt to make sense of himself through words. Dreams and Freudian terminology are frequently mentioned, as the narrator struggles with psychological stress and physical degradation from excessive smoking and lack of exercise. The author admits to falling into his own traps, and as he writes about his dog Pongo, he sees a parallel between himself and the needy and neglected dog. Anxiety ratchets up when he moves into a new house near an electric substation that won't stop buzzing. Despite his unhappiness, the author believes he cannot escape the tangle of consequences and must find his lost self among new patterns and learn to live differently.