Stormy Isles: An Azorean Tale

by Vitorino Nemésio, Francisco Cota Fagundes (Editor)

Stormy Isles, originally published in Portuguese in 1944 and set in the Azores between 1917 and 1919, focuses on the vivacious and sharp Margarida, who, at twenty years of age, is a model of feminist aspirations and the paragon of her generation. A member of the elite, she foregoes some of the entitlements of her class and struggles with the morals of the bourgeois society in which her life unfolds. Narrated in realist and poetic language as a series of interconnected tales within a larger story, this completely revised translation of Stormy Isles provides a rich, vivid portrait of the Azores in the early twentieth century.

426 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 20, 2019

About the author

Vitorino Nemésio Mendes Pinheiro da Silva (Praia da Vitória, 19 de dezembro de 1901 — Lisboa, 20 de fevereiro de 1978) foi um poeta, romancista, cronista, académico e intelectual açoriano que se destacou como autor de Mau Tempo no Canal, e professor da Faculdade de Letras da Universidade de Lisboa.

Reviews

[Birgitt Krumboeck · Rating 2 out of 5]

Even though it is certainly a masterpiece in terms of a portrait of society and the place of women in it during the years from 1917-1919 in the Acores, I was frankly bored for large passages. I guess this epoch is not my cup of tea. Kudos to the translator, though!

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Difficult and discursive but ultimately a solid book. You learn a lot about the Islands and its history and its inhabitants.. Didn't feel emotionally connected with any of them but it was a world.

[Simão Neves · Rating 3 out of 5]

A escrita em inglês pareceu-me não fazer juz à riqueza da envolvência descritiva que acredito que a língua portuguesa dá.

E isto não creio ter a ver com a qualidade da tradução, mas sim com a natureza de cada uma das línguas em si próprias.

Fiquei com vontade de ler a versão original em português.

[Caterina]

Not a book of our times, with a pace and a scope that are definitely not of our times. It was a difficult read, that purposely decides to "tell" it all and "show" nothing aside of the beautiful and harsh Azorean life.