Never too Late to Read Classics discussion

Our February read is Heartbreak Tango by another Argentinian author, Manuel Puig. The original Spanish title Boquitas pintadas (Little Painted Mouths) was published in 1969 with an English translation in 1973 and an Argentinian film adaptation in 1974. This book was Puig's 2nd novel. He is more well-known for his third novel Kiss of the Spider Woman which was adapted into an Academy Award-winning film and a Broadway musical.

Puig is considered to be a Postboom and Post-modernist writer. This book is written in an unconventional/experimental style. It consists of 16 episodes, starting with the death announcement of the main character - a young man, Juan Carlos Etchepare. His story and that of the women who loved him is told from a variety of sources such as diary entries, phone calls, letters, newspaper clippings, a gypsy fortune telling, and eye witness accounts. The book's jacket states that "Puig conceived the novel as a lighthearted parody of a romance magazine serial of the forties. Whatever his intention, he has satisfied a universal hunger for believable romantic fiction."

With February being the month for romance, who is up for reading this one?

Thanks for sharing. All this backstory is so interesting- did not realize this would be an experimental read. Even more curious now and looking forward to it :)

I'll be reading. I found a copy on openlibrary.org.

Kathy wrote: "I'll be reading. I found a copy on openlibrary.org."

That's what I'll be using too. It's this fun old book design: Hope it's a good translation.

That is a cool cover, Jen. I hope it's good too!

I’m reading the hardback edition with the same cover. Glad you both are going in on the read!

I'm hoping to be able to join sometime later this year. Our Toronto Library system was hit by a major cyberattack at the end of October. The card catalogue and hold system are supposed to be up in one month. We've been able to check out books this whole time, but no searching ability.
It sounds like an intriguing book.

Hope you will be able to join in later this year Rosemarie! That’s a shame about your library system. Of all things to cyberattack. Hope it’s up and running soon!

I'll start on the Puig after I've finished with 'The Tunnel', which is going better than I thought, but is really really intense and gloom inducing!

Glad you will be joining this Mbuye! This book is much lighter than The Tunnel. It’s less straightforward of a story though. Parts of it, especially the beginning, have been confusing to me. The author goes back and forth between different characters and doesn’t use names in dialogues (just dashes). I’ll add a comment with the characters’ full names and their nicknames. That’s been another confusing point for me. I am very curious what everyone will think about this one. The writing style is very different!

That's a great idea, Pam and sure to help other readers

Here are the names of 3 characters who are sometimes referred to by their formal name and other times by their nickname. I found it confusing, especially in the beginning, because there wasn’t enough context for me to understand who was who. I hope this info is helpful.

Nélida Fernández de Massa is Nené
Antonia Josefa Ramirez is Fanny or Big Fanny
Francisco Catalina Páez, a friend of Juan Carlos, is Pancho

Pam wrote: "Here are the names of 3 characters who are sometimes referred to by their formal name and other times by their nickname. I found it confusing, especially in the beginning, because there wasn’t enou..."

Thanks so much, Pam. I was baffled at first, and after fifty pages went back to see if, having come so far, the beginning made more sense. That, and your guide, have really helped a lot.

I am a little slow still about negotiating my way through Goodreads, so I didn't see your post till this morning. And I have given up on trying to italicise and stuff -- life's too short!

Mbuye - I’m glad you were able to make sense of the book! I feel like the beginning was intentionally written to be confusing, where you start to figure out relationships as you continue. I don’t necessarily like that approach. Also, I’m sure there are common nicknames in Spanish that, as an English speaker, I’m not familiar with but a native Spanish speaker would’ve recognized them.

There is one chapter I thought was particularly interesting in style and I’ve never seen a dialogue presented this way. Every line was dialogue and following each line was what the person was actually thinking, which was very different from what they were saying!

Overall, I didn’t love the book but I did find it interesting and felt that the ending was satisfying! There was one chapter, the Gypsy fortune telling, that I just skim read. I didn’t see the point of it. It just went on and on and on… What did you think??

Again, thanks for the encouragement. You've made so many points, and all so illuminating, that I don't know if I can answer them all!

The names in Spanish - the nicknames, rather - were the least confusing. Spanish names are like Russian names: you can have about ten variations of the single name 'Alexander' in Russian novels,and when they all occur on the same page, well. At least in Spanish, it's usually one name and one diminutive in the same book.

Yes, that chapter of double-speak dialogue was among the most entertaining, once the initial surprise was over. I enjoyed that.

The Gypsy reading in a way was crucial to the whole novel. It seems to sum up the entire plot, a sequence of events, in fact, the sequence and development of a doomed life with its happy moments.

As I mentioned, I was so mixed up at first that I went back to the beginning to see what I had missed. That's how the sybilline chapter made so much sense.

Now I'm back to where I left off, and Heartbreak Tango makes not just sense, but wraps you up in the beauty of the style. By the way, did you notice how the epigraphs at the beginning of each chapter begin with a verse fom a tango? I've been listening to some of this, particularly Homero Manzi's 'Malena'. It doesn't help me understand this book any more: I just like the music.

But to take a break from Puig, I relaxed with a Wodehouse (The Code of the Woosters)! Wodehouse gives you a marvellous perspective on yourself.

Mbuye - I like the term you used "double-speak". I thought that section was very clever and insightful!

I read the first part of the Gypsy reading chapter and recognized what the author was doing, but it made my head hurt. I hate when authors write pages and pages with no paragraph breaks (like stream of consciousness). It's hard on my eyes and mentally I feel like I need breaks. (I've struggled with other books for this same reason. I can't focus or comprehend what I'm reading.) I did mean to go back and read the rest of it but I forgot to. I think I would've liked that section if it was written differently.

Yes, I noticed the tango verses but didn't understand their relationship to the chapters. (I probably should've gone back and reread the quote after reading the chapter.) Can you list a few of the other tangos? I would like to listen to the music! If I was thinking, I would've found the music and listened to it while reading (or before/after) each chapter.

Have any of you read Kiss of the Spider Woman or seen the movie? I haven't done either but am thinking about witching the movie.

Pam,
The term double-speak is not my own. It's from George Orwell's book '1984'.

And never force yourself to like or read a book because people say it's a must-read or your friend says he liked it. Trust me on this.

I wish I had the names of the tangos, but I returned the book, but the one he quoted several times was Homero Manzi's 'Manela.'

Thanks for the suggestion about 'Kiss of the Spider Woman,' I too haven't seen the movie or read the book, but I'll keep it in mind.

Thanks again for the support!

Heartbreak Tango" dives into a complex tale of shattered hearts, hidden truths, jealousy, and betrayal swirling around Juan Carlos Etchepare, a self-absorbed 'Casanova' character. The story intricately weaves through the lives and downfall of Etchepare.
However, for me, this book missed the mark. The constant focus on Etchepare as the center of affection for all characters feels unrealistic. Moreover, the author's habit of switching between characters, timelines, and places adds confusion, making it hard to follow the story.

I've this book in French. It is possible the translation did not serve this book well. I will certainly read 'Kiss of the Spider Woman'. The movie was just great!

Nice review, Lorraine. I'm about 50 pages into the book. I definitely need to think of who the narration is about, where is the story set, and when is the story happening each time there is a break in the text. I like the letters, photo album and other forms the story takes.

I've finished the book and rated it 4 stars. I loved the writing (5 stars) but can't say I liked any of the characters (2.5 stars). I really had to concentrate on this book - written in so many forms, switching character focus. But it all worked, I think.

I actually think the focus on Juan Carlos Etchepare is realistic. I can just imagine the three women (and more) falling all over this 'Casanova' character. Not that I liked them for it. Juan Carlos treated women poorly, including his mother and sister.

Glad you liked it Kathy! I’m with Lorraine, feeling that it missed the mark for me. I struggled with the writing style changes, even though I found the book interesting. But, I did like the ending! I listened to a Duolingo Spanish podcast that discussed telenovelas (which I think is the same as the old serials that the author was referencing). If I understood it correctly, telenovelas are like American soap operas but they have a set number of episodes and end on a happy note. I had no idea how this book would end but it felt like a happy ending to me!

It did seem like Nene was satisfied with her life when she (view spoiler)[finally burned Juan Carlos' letters. (hide spoiler)]