Blindness

Blindness by Jose Saramago

Wow… that is really all I could say upon finishing this book.

First off, big thanks to my friend’s girlfriend for bringing it to my attention - Thank you, Amanda!

What if people begin going blind for no reason? The government quarantines those initially infected in an old mental hospital. Everyone is scared, vulnerable… human. Now, what if there is one person left who can see? What responsibilities are required of that person in such a situation where survival is uncertain? At what point does survival mean everything? What part does love and faith play in such a situation? How fast do we lose our humanity? What does it take to hold onto our humanity? There you have it - this is what Blindness by Jose Saramago is about. Now, of course, all that occurs upfront, and it is what the reader can gain from this book in between which is its true beauty. As an allegory of our own lives, it has an almost limitless and timeless quality to it. This book’s language and style grabbed hold of me and wouldn’t let go - described by some as "experimental", the long sentences and lack of dialogue distinction, in the end, enhances the reading experience - you get so into the words, punctuation somehow becomes of little importance (and barely noticed). In turns horrifying and absurd, beautiful and haunting, funny and tragic… Blindness is all that, and often times more, and does it all with such simplicity and weight that the reader has no choice but to follow along within the author’s vision. It leaves you feeling at once exhausted and inspired. I believe this book has the ability to affect many people on many different levels (an impressive feat), and I know it will stay with me for quite some time. I would recommend this book to nearly anyone.

There is a movie adaption of Blindness which looks entertaining, but I doubt the subtlety of the language Saramago uses translates well into film, and the movie will surely be the main plot, missing the little in between moments of real meaning that occur in this book - with that being said, I look forward to seeing it (I never judge a book by its movie or a movie by its book), the trailer does look entertaining.

Collector’s Note - a first American edition of Blindness seems to be going for somewhere on the rich side of $100, and upwards - worth it, on the low end, if you love the book or author - Jose Saramago is a Nobel Prize winner after all (and not only people who collect prize winners would be interested in this book) and I am sure the movie is not hurting demand either... there is a possibility that once the exposure the movie has created for the book decreases, the price will come down as well - for me that is a chance worth waiting for, as you never know when you might come across a reasonably priced copy somewhere (plus, I don’t normally spend that much on one book anyway).