The Book of Embraces (Norton Paperback)

Eduardo Galeano’s The Book of Embraces is a collection of vignettes that are formatted in mosaic-like manner. The vignettes discuss topics ranging from political commentary to explorations of philosophical themes;interspersed among the two are Galeano’s reminiscences and reflections of his own experience.The purpose of this novel is a as the title states; The Book of Embraces is a metaphorical embrace that Galeano imparts to his contemporaries and like-minded thinkers. It serves as a record of the past and an encouragement of acontinued fight against capitalist and imperialist forces. This novel, in a broader sense, is a celebration of art,friendship, courage, and the human voice. I read this book back in high-school and the profound meaning that this book conveys has stuck with me all of these years. It's definitely worth a read (it gets even better everytime you reread it and discover new meanings you didn't see the first time).

Galeano writes so well. The Book of Embraces is a gift I love giving to friends. The American book sleeve is intensely ugly: shiny black with horrible 1980s Latiny-feeling typography and colorful birds that a designer must have thought represented an exotic and essential "latin america". Please try not to judge it by this cover sleeve. The hardcover book, sans-sleeve, is simple and elegant, with one of Galeano's graphics (a horn with a hand emerging out of it) pressed into the cover's matte black.Inside, Galeano pairs mostly one page stories with both found and his own hand-created etchings. The etchings are collaged together: a humming bird sitting on an outsized finger, a dapper man with no head tipping his top hat to you, a trapeze artist disconnected from her ropes... The stories are about everything from a woman obsessed with eating glass to a Mayan myth that has more profound implications for today than it did when the Mayans created it. Galeano's etchings bear surreal relation to the stories. You never know as you turn the page if the next story will put bring you to tears, make you laugh and want to share the story, or make you pause reading for a few days to reflect on some insight. It's beautiful and genius. I choke up whenever I attempt to read it aloud.

My 30 yr old daughter recommened this. I liked the content and also that the essays were short. The content is politically oriented since the author is from South America. Very interesting read.

A personal and political book written in fragments, "The Book of Embraces" traces the life of a man who was a journalist in Latin America. The response to the unrest by his friends and the way their lives are shaped by the exile from their own country, is depicted in a way that makes one care and hold it close. A gem of a book that somehow went overlooked.

Galeano is absolutely masterful. This is a very dear work of prose featuring short stories, very short in his rather collage form. This is extremely effective in his hands.This is one of those rare books I will read more than once.John A Leraas

I didn't know literature could be so entertaining. I liked to read the non-fiction history of South America. Galeano was there to see civil war and new governments. He saw his friends raised to new heights and die. Very interesting

Wow. This book is incredible. I was skeptical at first, but then I just got hooked. I finished this nearly in a single sitting. Absolutely delightful story collection.

Really, this is stories within stories-- and history-- and beautiful word illustrations. Highly moving and highly recommended. I read this book in high school World Literature class, and it moved me so much that it has continued to be a book I go back to for motivation and inspiration.

Great edition and good translation!

All good!

This book is passionate, brilliant, and full of mystical realism. All of the short vignettes come together for a magnificent whole. Galeano is a master of the art of story.

My favourite book :)