Some books reach their readers exactly when they are needed. Fate became one of those books for me. I think a lot about destiny, life, death and the world we live on right now. This book has told me hundreds of times how fleeting and short life is. I’ve relaxed a little bit; it is good to read that I am not alone, that we all go through tough and deep things sometimes.
Fate was the first book I’ve read from the Argentinian author Jorge Consiglio, and I think it will not be the last. It was a different experience for me to read the experiences of a group of characters regardless of a particular story. If you like character-oriented novels, you might like it as well. Enjoy!
Fate
They inhabited a present that was weightless, fickle even, and yet at the same time effortlessly assembled; it was the very embodiment of something sound, something firm and tangible: a space of utter certainty…
This novel focuses on a group of characters who are all in different ways endeavouring to take control of their fate. Their desire to lead a genuine existence forces them to confront difficult decisions, and to break out of comfortable routines.
Karl and Marina have been together for ten years and have a young son, Simón. Karl is a German-born oboist at Argentina’s national orchestra, and Marina is a meteorologist. On a field trip, she meets fellow researcher Zárate, and what might have been just a fling starts to erode the foundations of her marriage. Then there is Amer, a dynamic and successful taxidermist. At a group therapy session for smokers, Amer falls for the younger Clara. While the relationship between Karl and Marina disintegrates, the love story between Amer and Clara is just beginning – or is it already at an end?
One of Argentina’s leading contemporary writers, Jorge Consiglio portrays the inner worlds of these characters through the minute details of their everyday lives, laying bare their strivings and their frustrations with a wry gaze, and seeking in this close-up texture a deeper truth.
Jorge Consiglio
Jorge Consiglio is an Argentine poet, novelist and writer. He was born in Buenos Aires and studied at the University of Buenos Aires. Jorge has published four novels, and has won numerous literary prizes in Argentina and Spain. He has also published several volumes of short stories and poetry.
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
