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In a Danish film when a schoolteacher is accused of sexually abusing a girl it is as though the accusation proves the guilt; the seriousness of the offence leaves no room for hesitation. It is believed that innocent children unsullied by life's deceptions always tell the truth. But later it transpires that the child
described things, that could only be interpreted as sexual abuse, to spite her teacher against whom she had held a small grudge. Even so the man is unable to wash off the stigma. He In a Danish film when a schoolteacher is accused of sexually abusing a girl it is as though the accusation proves the guilt; the seriousness of the offence leaves no room for
hesitation. It is believed that innocent children unsullied by life's deceptions always tell the truth. But later it transpires that the child described things, that could only be interpreted as sexual abuse, to spite her teacher against whom she had held a small grudge. Even so the man is unable to wash off the stigma. He is forced to resign from his job and socially boycotted, leaving his life in total disarray. But when little Alfonso shows a composition he’s written for school titled In
Praise of the Stepmother, his father is in for a brutal shock: everything he’s written is cent percent true. Here we have a mind-boggling story that contrasts the corrupting power of innocence with our assumptions of children’s purity and their inability to act in ways we only associate with devious adults. In one painting he comes across as a shrewd prime minister of the King of Lydia who contrives to make the king
show him the queen naked in bed; in another he is a young goatherd hiding in the cover of woods who takes furtive ganders at the naked luminosity of Lord Rigoberto’s wife, exciting evermore Doña’s desire for her maidservant. In the abstract painting he is an insidious presence in the foul mingling of blood and semen; and in another he’s a musician who is put there by Don Rigoberto so that Doña Lucrecia could look at his youthful countenance to arouse her desire and thus make her ready for Don
Rigoberto’s bed! When the organ player looks at where his gaze is fixed, what is he finding? There is something there that attracts his eyes in the late afternoon each day, with the imperiousness of a stroke of fate or the magic of a witch’s spell. Something like the divination that, at the foot of the sunlit mound of Venus, in the tender cleft protected by the rounded columns of the lady’s thighs, resilient, red, moist with the dew of her privateness, pours forth the fountain of life and pleasure. In just a little while now, our lord and master Don Rigoberto will bend down to drink ambrosia from it.
There are those who soon tire of their lawfully wedded wife. The routine of married life kills desire, they philosophize: what illusory hope can swell and revive the veins of a man who sleeps, for months and years, with the same woman? Yet, despite our having been wed for so long a time, Lucrecia, my lady, does not bore me. When I go off on tiger and elephant hunts, the memory of her makes my heart beat faster, just as in the first days, and when I caress a slave girl or some camp follower so as to relieve the loneliness of nights in a field tent, my hands always experience a keen disappointment: those are merely backsides, buttocks, rumps, asses. Only hers – O Beloved – is the croup. There’s lots to deal with. Llosa with his too keen an eye and too liberal a pen, but with consummate éclat, has told a bunch of scintillating stories whose every line makes you a philosopher of the mysterious origins of happiness, of sexual fulfillment, the grey areas of hebephilia, relationships that may become incestuous (stepmother/stepson), and, above all, the dark, pervasive evil that lives at the core of humanity and sullies its name. Written March '15. ...more
I hesitate between 3 and 4 stars here. As always, the writing is fantastic. There are also five chapters which give dialog to paintings by Jordaens, Boucher, Francis Bacon, Szyslo,
and Fra Angelico which are gorgeous. But the premise of incest initiated by the kid is, well, disturbing. That being said, there is also 3 pages on Don Rogoberto taking a shit which is insane as well. Not my favorite MVL, but a short and interesting read. Fino's Mario Vargas Llosa Reviews: Fino's Mario Vargas Llosa Reviews:
Feb 05, 2012 Fabian rated it really liked it Only the Marquis de Sade has succeeded in crafting an epic erotic novel. He made a whole list of very dirty acts into a catalog of love—a true art piece. Mario Vargas Llosa has 150 pages to make the Reader feel aroused and inspired by his prose construction, and it gets done. “In Praise of the Stepmother” is seemingly-simple, yet this is its (Post!)modern edge: there is art commentary occurring concurrently with the plot’s development. Gosh how I envy these spouts with the muse: Vargas Llosa is Only the Marquis de Sade has succeeded in crafting an epic erotic novel. He made a whole list of very dirty acts into a catalog of love—a true art piece. Mario Vargas Llosa has 150 pages to make the Reader feel aroused and inspired by his prose construction, and it gets done. “In Praise of the Stepmother” is seemingly-simple, yet this is its (Post!)modern edge: there is art commentary occurring concurrently with the plot’s development. Gosh how I envy these spouts with the muse: Vargas Llosa is open to all types of stimuli, most of them are sexual & told about incredibly well. Very tasteful. & that is quite a feat when you consider the novel’s narrative: about a stepmother who sleeps with her underage stepson. ...more
It's funny how things stick in your head. I remember reading this and thinking "These stories are supposed to be erotic? Am I really supposed to be turned on by loving descriptions of
some guy clipping his toenails in a certain shape, or another one cleansing out his colon? Really?" Then I got older, and realized that people are far more fucked up than the folk Vargas Llosa wrote about. I remember reading this and thinking "These stories are supposed to be erotic? Am I really supposed to be turned on by loving descriptions of some guy clipping his toenails in a certain shape,
or another one cleansing out his colon? Really?" Then I got older, and realized that people are far more fucked up than the folk Vargas Llosa wrote about.
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
“In Praise of the Stepmother” is a thought-provoking fantasia on innocence, sex, and art which never fails to force us into questioning our most precious of assumptions. Not wishing to have our own little bourgeois moralities threatened is, I suppose, one reason why many people have dismissed this novel as “disgusting” or “immoral” or something equally nonsensical. At its core rests a simple story. After
a failed marriage with his young son Alfonso’s mother, Don Rigoberto marries Dona Lucrecia, At its core rests a simple story. After a failed marriage with his young son Alfonso’s mother, Don Rigoberto marries Dona Lucrecia, a woman whom he truly adores and is certainly erotically infatuated with. On the first page of the novel, Alfonso, a boy of ten or twelve, leaves a note on his stepmother’s pillow congratulating her on her fortieth birthday, and saying that he will do his best to become first in his class to reward her. This is the inaugurating move in a
cat-and-mouse game that drives the entire novel forward in a series of events that reaches its apex in a lurid sexual encounter between Alfonso and Lucrecia which occurs while Rigoberto is on a business trip. She does not deliberately set out to do this, yet still has found herself titillated by the occasional fugitive thought of her and her stepson in coitus. At the very end of the novel, we find out that Alfonso wrote an essay for school in which he details his erotic relationship with his
mother and, to make matters worse, read it to his father. Why? We don’t know. In the last pages of the book, the housekeeper asks Alfonso why he would do such an insidious thing to the stepmother he loved so much, to which he replies, “I did it for you,” seemingly setting the entire wheel rolling toward tragedy and destruction once more. Vargas Llosa artfully interlards the worlds of the erotic and sensual (the lovemaking of Lucrecia and Rigoberto) with Rigoberto’s mundane daily ablutions
– the trimming of his nose hairs, the application of cologne to his body, the special care that he gives his feet and hands. This spiritual aubade to the body, which apparently bored so many readers, is what drew me in and made turned the reading into an almost ecstatic experience. This was only heightened by the six exquisite colored plates that are placed in the novel to accentuate themes in the story. Alfonso’s duplicity (or was it duplicity after all?) asks, as Slavoj Zizek has done
by other means, “Isn’t love the ultimate act of violence?” After this novel, it is impossible not to see the ulterior and tenebrous underbelly of the most innocent of gestures. Whose desire is outlawed, Lucrecia’s or the boy’s? Can Don Rigoberto somehow turn outside that scrutiny to which he so easily applies to himself in his daily bath in order to answer what has happened under his roof? Some of these questions are never answered, but the way Vargas Llosa asks them makes reconciling one’s self
to the novel and its moral imperatives deliciously fun.
I don't even want to start on this...incest and monsters and creatures and domination and organs and some more incest. The only thing that made this book readable is llosa's style. other than that, horrible. I don't even want to start on this...incest and monsters and creatures and domination and organs and some more incest. The only thing that made this book readable is llosa's style. other than that, horrible. ...more
I had not read the summary before I started reading. So I was a little surprised by the subject from the start, but when you look at the cover, you can imagine that sexuality will be at the centre of the story. I was surprised that the author broached incest, but by the fact that the child is rather perverse and wants to seduce his mother-in-law at all costs. So, it's confusing to read, especially since the author describes certain aspects very in-depth. I had not read the summary before I started reading. So I was a little surprised by the subject from the start, but when you look at the cover, you can imagine that sexuality will be at the centre of the story. I was surprised that the author broached incest, but by the fact that the child is rather perverse and wants to seduce his mother-in-law at all costs. So, it's confusing to read, especially since the author describes certain aspects very in-depth. ...more
Disturbing but well written although too short. What I don’t really like is the ending for it demonises the victim - even if the victim seems to have known what he was doing he was still a 9 year old, a child. I thus cannot understand why Lucrecia seems to gather people’s sympathies. She was a pedophile, even if she comes across as ‘loving’.
There are some comments in the reviews that advocate the burning of this book - a stance more insidious and disturbing than any to be found amongst its pages. Literature can, and should be, transgressive. If you want to read like minds, in like worlds, spouting like values, I suggest you read your diary instead. And for the record, the ten year old Alfonso is undoubtedly the villain of the piece - he'll be burying bodies under the patio by the time he's thirty. There are some comments in the reviews that advocate the burning of this book - a stance more insidious and disturbing than any to be found amongst its pages. Literature can, and should be, transgressive. If you want to read like minds, in like worlds, spouting like values, I suggest you read your diary instead. And for the record, the ten year old Alfonso is undoubtedly the villain of the piece - he'll be burying bodies under the patio by the time he's thirty. ...more
Okay so I have been putting this off.... procrastinating purposely to write a review for this
one. The reason being this book kinda freaked me out, to be honest still does. I have read plenty about enfant terrible, seen a couple of brats but the kid in this book knocks the ball out of the park for sure. Evidently reading a book without glancing at its reviews has its repercussions a plenty sometimes. Wanting to expand my horizons, to experiment and find authors new to me who have a credible line o The reason being this book kinda freaked me out, to be honest still does. I have read plenty about enfant terrible, seen a couple of brats but the kid in this book knocks the ball out of the park for sure. Evidently reading a book without glancing at its reviews has its repercussions a plenty sometimes. Wanting to expand my horizons, to experiment and find authors new to me who have a credible line of work led to me Llosa.
Reading a lot of praise for Peruvian author Mario Vargas Llosa I found this book while glancing for the translated versions of his works. Settling for the shortest book was a conscious choice as I did not want to start off with a huge book when reading a new author. I wanted to get a glimpse into the author' style and see if I was even gonna like it. No point in investing time and money if it does not appeal to you as a reader after all. I read the summary which was interesting and figured
it could be a good read; boy I did not see what I was heading into. Perhaps that cover should have been my first warning but I really did not think much of it. Just thought it's a bit scandalous but that is sometimes a way to grab eyeballs too, besides racy covers aren't all that shocking anymore, so it was no big deal. Though this one does have a child on it which was a bit weird to digest but nonetheless I didn't put much thought into it, which in hindsight may be I should have. Translated
from Elogio de la madrastra by Helen Lane, this book depicts the sexual and erotic life of Don Rigoberto and his second wife Doña Lucrecia, an upper middle class couple who live with Rigoberto' young son Alfonsito called Fonchito, by his first wife. Rigoberto is a creature of habit and it can be annoying to read in detail the descriptions of his daily habits and his personal hygiene routine. A chunk of this already short book is devoted solely to how he keeps himself clean and
what he does to ensure his looks are presentable and aesthetically pleasing, when he finally joins his wife in the bedroom. The couple is recently married and quite sexually active thanks to Rigoberto' interest in eroticism and his wish to live out fantasies inspired by certain works of art within the confines of their bedroom with his wife. Lucrecia goes along with Rigoberto and though guilty of indulging in vanity herself is not entirely comfortable with the fantasies her husband
has. She has just turned 40, which is an age that does start making a woman feel as if she is losing her youth more than ever. So even though her husband does create uncomfortable situations for her she goes with it, perhaps just to feel good about herself. Not wanting to age and feel attractive are the catalytic factors behind her actions IMO. She let's him live with his delusions so that she may illude herself too. Things run smoothly in the household until Rigoberto' son whose age is
not disclosed but who seems to be prepubescent to me embarks on a incestuous relationship with his stepmother Lucrecia. Fonchito with his cherubic face and obedient ways doesn't strike to Lucrecia as anything but a loving child even though in the beginning she feared he would hate her. Instead he surprises her with his acceptance and acts in a way that makes Lucrecia feel she was being harried for no reason after all. However it is just the tip of the iceberg that Lucrecia has seen, for
unknown to her, her young stepson has taken an interest in her wherein he views her in a way which is anything but motherly. He spies on her as she takes baths and frequently hugs or kisses her. Acts veiled by innocence but being anything but innocent. Slowly and surely Lucrecia who initially views it just as a child' affections for his stepmother is manipulated. She knows all too well what she is doing or so she thinks when one day she finally crosses the boundaries she knows are
forbidden while her husband is away on a business trip as she has her first sexual encounter with her stepson, which then becomes a norm. Fonchito' innocence and youth appeal to her, feeding off her own cravings. Making her feel loved, cherished, beautiful and attractive, when a boy who though technically her stepson but a young man finds her tempting. The household comes crumbling down when finally Rigoberto learns of his wife' affair with his own son and assumes she manipulated the child
and took advantage of him. The only one who realizes what truly happened and who actually manipulated who is the housemaid Justiniana who recognizes the diabolical mind that lurks behind the angelic face of Fonchito. The prose is so sophisticated that you have to be completely invested when reading the book to truly grasp the depth and sophistication of the writing. While there are no vivid descriptions of sexual acts there is a certain sensuality and sexuality that just oozes out of the writing. On the face the book is a scandalous piece of work which explores the controversial subjects of incest, paedophilia and tackles the lengths people could go to for sexual gratification however on a deeper level it tackles issues such as the place of sensualism and sexuality in our lives and loss of innocence. Not for the faint of heart certainly since the subject is pretty uncomfortable. This review can also be found at One reader A thousand lives ...more
Jun 21, 2008 Carrie rated it did not like it I made the unfortunate decision to fight my tendency to be an ADD
reader and promised myself I would finish one book before picking up another right before choosing "In Praise of the Stepmother." I can't stand the Don Rigoberto character! It's supposed to be a novel about a step-mother who discovers that her 10 year old step-son has a crush on her. But it turns out to be this long description of Don Rigoberto's erotic enjoyment of elaborate personal hygiene rituals. And then, if that wasn't bad I made the
unfortunate decision to fight my tendency to be an ADD reader and promised myself I would finish one book before picking up another right before choosing "In Praise of the Stepmother." I can't stand the Don Rigoberto character! It's supposed to be a novel about a step-mother who discovers that her 10 year old step-son has a crush on her. But it turns out to be this long description of Don Rigoberto's erotic enjoyment of elaborate personal hygiene rituals. And then, if that wasn't bad enough when
the stepmother discovers the boy's crush she indulges him and they begin a physical relationship. UGggh. And then, what is supposed to be the artistic side of the book, these alternating chapters of dream/fantasy interpretation of famous works of art is just more of the same lewd story. Finally I'm finished with this book! Done, off to the used book shop, I'll never read this one again and I don't want it on my shelf.
Mar 10, 2018 Simona rated it really liked it A story, that doesn’t leave you indifferent, has at the heart of it incestuous relation between stepmother and child(Alfonso), and the main story is surrounded with the erotic relation between Lucrecia and her husband Rigoberto, the relation between husband and his
experiencing of his body. The entire story is accompanied by a literary interpretation of the five pictures, passing from classics, almost idyllic motives, to the modern, more macabre style and all of them reflects current situation/d A story, that doesn’t leave you indifferent, has at the heart of it incestuous relation between stepmother and child(Alfonso), and the main story is surrounded with the erotic relation between Lucrecia and her husband
Rigoberto, the relation between husband and his experiencing of his body. The entire story is accompanied by a literary interpretation of the five pictures, passing from classics, almost idyllic motives, to the modern, more macabre style and all of them reflects current situation/dynamics between the family, from perfection to destruction, from love to hate, from angelic to devilish, and from pleasure of the body to the pain in the soul ... A very unusual story, very erotic, exposing
relation/issue between innocence and guilt, and when innocence becomes funding for reach the goal. Characterization is excellent, diverse structure makes you into thinking, provocative and repulsive story, written in a rich, fluid prose ... and with one of the creepiest ends I've read so far. Polarizing, but I like it and I think that it’s very good story.
i really-really liked llosa's style in this book. i don't care that everybody considers it an erotic novel, i could feel the fullness and the richness of the language even if i read it in translation [a very good one]. llosa juggles with words and synonyms and there's no way one becomes bored with the book. maybe i sound a bit over-enthusiastic, the truth is it doesn't often happen to me to like someone's
words and phrases so much. *** *** ce mi-a placut foarte mult [aceeasi
tehnica am remarcat-o si in "matusa julia si condeierul"]: capitolele povestirii propriu-zise se intercaleaza cu unele diferite, in cazul de fata unele care ne introduc in lumea artei [don rigoberto este un pasionat colectionar de arta], in care personajele de pe pinza devin pe rind naratori, depanindu-si povestioarele de amor din perspectiva proprie.
Revolting subject matter (incest, pedophilia) offset by beautiful, intense writing. Helen Lane's translation is brilliant. In Praise of the Stepmother is erotica, but that's not why I was uncomfortable. Vargas Llosa can make nosehair-picking sound sexy. OK, so he valiantly attempts to do so. I'm just picturing him with a constant boner while writing this, because he finds eroticism in a lampshade. I'm not sure it would have been any less effective had the stepson been of age, but maybe I'm just Revolting subject matter (incest, pedophilia) offset by beautiful, intense writing. Helen Lane's translation is brilliant. In Praise of the Stepmother is erotica, but that's not why I was uncomfortable. Vargas Llosa can make nosehair-picking sound sexy. OK, so he valiantly attempts to do so. I'm just picturing him with a constant boner while writing this, because he finds eroticism in a lampshade. I'm not sure it would have been any less effective had the stepson been of age, but maybe I'm just not getting it. Vargas Llosa interposes art and mysticism with modern-day morality play. But I'm not sure if this was about the hidden maturity of children, the exploration of taboo, or whether it was just straight-up porn about desire and sexual compatibility. I recommend reading this review from a reader who was able to take this apart with far more agility than I am. Regardless of how I felt about the story, I look forward to reading another one of his proper novels—The Feast of the Goat is easily a five-star read. I'm grateful to In Praise of the Stepmother for at least showing me that there's more to Vargas Llosa than a good yarn. ...more
Jun 13, 2013 Esraa rated it liked it This novel was such a strong text to read. Actually, I can't say I liked it that much, since it has many disturbing images and ideas such as the pedophilia tendencies of Lucretia or the deformation that Don Rigober describes and takes pride in along with his elongated hygiene scenes.
Mar 10, 2013 Chuck Lowry rated it did not like it I recently read and enjoyed Death in the Andes, my
first Mario Vargas Llosa novel. To bolster my poor knowledge of and feeling for South American literature, I thought to read another of his, and the one I ended up with, just almost at random, was In Praise of the Stepmother. How was I to know that this was an "erotic novel"? I am fine reading books with sex as an element of the plot and character development. I am less enthusiastic reading books about sex, with long passages on the hygiene of var How was I to know that this was an "erotic novel"? I am fine reading books with sex as an element of the plot and character development. I am less enthusiastic reading books
about sex, with long passages on the hygiene of various body parts and a major plot element that involves incest and sex between an adult and a minor. Ugh. I had to force myself to finish it, and it is not even 150 pages long.
Ok, this is porn. But it's the worst kind of porn: intellectual porn, look-how-well-I-can-write porn. Some interesting stuff, but the worst of all Vargas Llosa I've read. Ok, this is porn. But it's the worst kind of porn: intellectual porn, look-how-well-I-can-write porn. Some interesting stuff, but the worst of all Vargas Llosa I've read. ...more
I liked this book. There is something about that I can't explain. It was wierd, but good. I liked this book. There is something about that I can't explain. It was wierd, but good. ...more
This is a book you can read in one sitting. The writing style is marvelous, but the subject and the topic in the book might not be for everyone since it tackles some very inappropriate relationships and some weird symbolism which will not suit everyone. At times it was uncomfortable to read but I imagine that was one of the main points.
Nov 21, 2015 Ernest Junius rated it it was amazing Don Rigoberto’s carnal fascination with his beautiful second wife, Lucrecia, is secretly shared by his cherubic son, Alfonsito. Lucrecia on the other hand seems to be intrigued by this development. She is forever pondering whether the love Alfonsito gives her,
straightforward as it may seem, like hugs, kisses on the cheek, a little peck on the lips…, is innocent or is concealing another more ambitious motive. A validation comes into sight when she is told by the maid that she saw Alfonsito had b Don Rigoberto’s carnal fascination with his beautiful second wife, Lucrecia, is secretly shared by his cherubic son, Alfonsito. Lucrecia on the other hand seems to be intrigued by this development. She is forever
pondering whether the love Alfonsito gives her, straightforward as it may seem, like hugs, kisses on the cheek, a little peck on the lips…, is innocent or is concealing another more ambitious motive. A validation comes into sight when she is told by the maid that she saw Alfonsito had been peeping her showering by standing on a perilous perch on the roof of the house. The seduction soon comes from both parts, the stepson, and the stepmother, and when the Don Rigoberto, the father, finds out,
Lucrecia is thrown out of the house. What is the motive of this nebulous little villain, Alfonsito? By the end of the book Justita, the maid, asked him whether he did this because he can’t bear to have another woman replace his mama? To that he answers: “I did it for you, Justita…because you’re the one that I…” and his mouth comes hard at hers. As the maid staggered out of the room, rubbing her mouth, she hears Alfonsito laugh with genuine delight, as though enjoying a splendid joke. The
story, which spans 14 episodes long with one epilogue, does actually entertain in the manner of a good twisted fairy tales. What’s interesting though, the chapters are interspersed with steatopygiac nude and one curious near abstract painting by Francis Bacon, and an abstract cubism-like painting by Szyszlo. These paintings come to life in the book, most often told in first person, acting like a silent witness to the lascivious events in the house of Don Rigoberto, all the while lending their
artistic beauty to the aesthetic of carnal pleasure. The novel is an erotic novel written with ambitious stylistic sophistication. While it can be read calmly over a good cup of tea or coffee, it doesn’t lose its power to stimulate the pumping of blood to the groin. However, there is more art in this than sex. Of course, art, art all over. Otherwise, how else could the author have won the Nobel Prize? I like this book a great deal. It is strange, hazy, and absurd, but it ends just at
the right time and length—just right before it gets lost in symbolism and over-absurdness. Although, unlike fairy tales, there is no ‘moral of the story’ at the end of the book, there are enough things to ponder about; things that change our perception and idea towards lust, desire, and perversity—a great good deal of dirty thoughts, too.
Nov 10, 2013 Neal Adolph rated it really liked it A minor work from a major author is still an
exciting read. A fantastic read, even. And, though it is tempting to give this book three stars, that would only be because as the work compares to Llosa's other work it is not uniquely strong. Compared to most other literature, though, it is nothing short of astounding. In this work Llosa considers sexual pleasure, perfection, happiness, joy, and family, childhood, innocense and corruption. He tackles the magical and pagan and the influence of desire In this work Llosa considers sexual pleasure, perfection, happiness, joy, and family, childhood, innocense and corruption. He tackles the
magical and pagan and the influence of desire and manipulation. And he does this in language that is beautiful, sentences that sweep the reader into a state of rapture. Reading this book is just as pleasant as, I am sure, being one of the characters experiencing the fullness of sexual connection. The ending is, perhaps, judged as weak by some. But I don't think it is. The epilogue is haunting in a way that reminded me of Dorris Lessing's "The Fifth Child," but Llosa is using the child in a
very different way. Rather than something that seems monstrous, Foncho is too beautiful and loving and easily trusted. Too perfect. And he uses this perfection - this purity - in such a way that the world doesn't know what to do around him. They are delirious in his presence, intoxicated. The exciting thing is that this revelation (spoiler, perhaps) turns the agency built up in the first half of the book around. Dona Lucrecia, Foncho's stepmother, is the woman we are all led to believe is
the supernaturally perfect creation. The one whose lineage is connected to the ancient world, whose sexual power is a product of some kind of unknowable but entirely believable history. She is intoxicating to all who meet her. She is passionate. She is sensual. She is, nearly, a goddess given the divine power to incite desire. This is an impressive exploration. I went in expecting to enjoy myself and come away impressed and intrigued. Not horrified - as often happens with Llosa's more
political works - but certainly seeing the world in a slightly different way. Recommended.
Aug 23, 2007 Luisa rated it really liked it Oh, this is a wicked, wicked little book, but oh so worth the read. If you're a fan of you might dig this, but honestly, aside from the connection of forbidden relationships, the deeper connection of self-deception is more entrancing, and the young boy in this book is simply evil, not merely curious nor testing his personality. Why read it then? Well, there is a catharsis that ends the book, a very satisfying comeuppance that Nobokov never really delivered to Humbert Humbert, and there is a dee Oh, this is a wicked, wicked little book, but oh so worth the read. If you're a fan of you might dig this, but honestly, aside from the connection of forbidden relationships, the deeper connection of self-deception is more entrancing, and the young boy in this book is simply evil, not merely curious nor testing his personality. Why read it then? Well, there is a catharsis that ends the book, a very satisfying comeuppance that Nobokov never really delivered to Humbert Humbert, and there is a deeper ongoing question about the validity of desire which Nabokov addresses with too much subtlety, but Vargas Llosa does not. You can feel it building in the inter-chapters between the main plot line, where Vargas Llosa takes brief narrative breaks and describes works of art. These textual insertions seem like mere fetishes, until the final one hits home and the story comes crashing down. Very entertaining when you finally feel the purpose of his narrative construct. A quick afternoon read and a great topic for conversation with friends who've read it. ...more
Jan 02, 2014 Elise rated it really liked it A very erotic and beautifully written book, but it does engage some taboo subject matter, so if you require conventional morality in your reading material, this is not the novella for you. However, if you do decide to read "In Praise of the Stepmother," don't cheat yourself by reading this one in e-book format. In an e-book, you will miss out on the glossy, colored plates of beautiful classic works of visual art that reflect the story's subject matter. Anyone who enjoys sensual pleasure and is l A very erotic and beautifully written book, but it does engage some taboo subject matter, so if you require conventional morality in your reading material, this is not the novella for you. However, if you do decide to read "In Praise of the Stepmother," don't cheat yourself by reading this one in e-book format. In an e-book, you will miss out on the glossy, colored plates of beautiful classic works of visual art that reflect the story's subject matter. Anyone who enjoys sensual pleasure and is looking to reawaken the passion in life will likely enjoy this book. But be forewarned, there is something here for everyone, even things that were somewhat distasteful to me, and I am quite open minded. But that is not why I am giving this book four stars. What bothered me was that the emotional effect of the narrative was sometimes not as unified as I would have liked because of the strange tangents that were relevant, although not always enjoyable. And I felt that some of those tangents could have been cut and replaced with more fully developed characters and narrative conflict. ...more
The plot is a stretch: a happily married second wife encourages the amorous yearnings of a pre-pubescent boy and ruins her marriage. The husband is an obsessive-compulsive type who spends an hour in the bathroom grooming himself each day. I found the details of hygiene and bodily functions and functioning a bit much and not at all erotic as the book jacket blurbs claim. Some of this stuff would make John Updike blush. The author is a Nobel Prize winner in literature (2010) from Peru and this is The plot is a stretch: a happily married second wife encourages the amorous yearnings of a pre-pubescent boy and ruins her marriage. The husband is an obsessive-compulsive type who spends an hour in the bathroom grooming himself each day. I found the details of hygiene and bodily functions and functioning a bit much and not at all erotic as the book jacket blurbs claim. Some of this stuff would make John Updike blush. The author is a Nobel Prize winner in literature (2010) from Peru and this is a translation from the Spanish. ...more
I just can not believe that this author won the Nobel Prize. This book is just awful! How can a book written by a novel prize winning author filled with art be so ugly??? I do not under any circumstances recommend. This is just a porno in book form. I feel the premise could have been very thought provoking and interestingly approached. But he opted for a cheap porno and people are looking way too deep into it to justify having read and enjoyed a porno.
Romantic and naturalistic. Sexual and physiological. The opposites melted into a surprisingly fluent narrative and a consistent picture. Brave adventure into the human soul, and you need to be brave to understand the full power of the book - brave enough to admit that it is not about some abstract people, but about things that can happen and at times do happen in your own head.
Nov 26, 2012 أبو يوسف rated it did not like it
It's just a nasty sex story does not deserve the reputation.
A perfectly reasonable piece of literary porn. Nice edition - with pictures!
an annoying kid his self-absorbed stepmother and his fragile father experiencing some kind of weirdly intellectual sexual awakening. there’s bits of good writing but overall a strange hard-to-navigate story that is mostly superfluous drudgery. it’s not even hot so you can’t get off on this Mario Vargas Llosa, born in Peru in 1936, is the author of some of the most significant writing to come out of South America in the past fifty years. His novels include The Green House, about a brothel in a Peruvian town that brings together the innocent
and the corrupt; The Feast of the Goat, a vivid re-creation of the Dominican Republic during the final days of General Rafael Trujillo’s insidiou Mario Vargas Llosa, born in Peru in 1936, is the author of some of the most significant writing to come out of South America in the past fifty years. His novels include The Green House, about a brothel in a Peruvian town that brings together the innocent and the corrupt; The Feast of the
Goat, a vivid re-creation of the Dominican Republic during the final days of General Rafael Trujillo’s insidious regime; and Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter, a comedic semi-autobiographical account of an aspiring writer named Marito Varguitas, who falls in love with Julia, the divorced sister-in-law of his Uncle Lucho. He is also a widely read and respected essayist, writing everything from newspaper opinion pieces to critical works on other writers, including The Perpetual
Orgy on Flaubert. Vargas Llosa is also active outside the literary arena, and was a serious contender for the presidency of Peru in 1990 (eventually losing to the now disgraced Alberto Fujimori), an experience he documented in his memoir, A Fish in the Water. On the controversial nature of some of his work he said, “The writer’s job is to write with rigor, with commitment, to defend what they believe with all the talent they have. I think that’s part of the moral
obligation of a writer, which cannot be only purely artistic. I think a writer has some kind of responsibility at least to participate in the civic debate. I think literature is impoverished, if it becomes cut from the main agenda of people, of society, of life.” He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature for the year 2010, "for his cartography of structures of power & his trenchant images of the individual's resistance, revolt, and defeat". http://us.macmillan.com/author/mariov... News & InterviewsTraditionally, the fall season is when we see publishing’s Big Literary Names bringing their new work to shelves worldwide. The autumn... “Because happiness was temporal, individual, in exceptional circumstances twofold, on extremely rare occasions tripartite, and never collective, civic.” — 4 likes “كان يحلم بتغيير العالم. وسرعان ما أدرك أن تحقيق ذلك هو حلم مستحيل ومحكوم عليه بالاخفاق، مثلما هي كل المثل العليا الجماعية. وقادته روحه العملية إلى عدم إضاعة الوقت في خوض معارك سيخسرها عاجلاً أو آجلاً. وحدس عندئذ أن فكرة الكمال فد تكون ممكنة التحقيق بالنسبة إلى الفرد المعزول، بحصرها في مجال محدد في المكان أو في الزمان.” — 1 likes More quotes…Welcome back. Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account. |
In praise of the stepmother review
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