• A General Theory of Oblivion
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Archipelago Books

A General Theory of Oblivion

A General Theory of Oblivion

by José Eduardo Agualusa, translated from the Portuguese by Daniel Hahn

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On the eve of Angolan independence, an agoraphobic woman named Ludo bricks herself into her Luandan apartment for 30 years, living off vegetables and the pigeons she lures in with diamonds, burning her furniture and books to stay alive and writing her story on the apartment’s walls.

Almost as if we’re eavesdropping, the history of Angola unfolds through the stories of those she sees from her window.

Additional Book Information

Series: Archipelago Books
ISBN: 9780914671312
Pages: 250
Publication Date:

Praise

The story of Ludo bricking herself in her apartment on the eve of Angolan independence and staying there for 30 years had me thinking of our present times. What if being indoors becomes the new normal? Would we deal with it as Ludo does and what world do we then find when eventually we get out? Will it be better? But it’s also a book about the redemptive powers of love and how humanity needs each other. Because although Ludo thinks she is okay being alone, when she finally bonds with Sabalu, a young boy who scales her wall, her life changes.
—Zukiswa Wanner

Without doubt one of the most important Portuguese-language writers of his generation.
—António Lobo Antunes

Cross J.M. Coetzee with Gabriel García Márquez and you've got José Eduardo Agualusa, Portugal's next candidate for the Nobel Prize.
—Alan Kaufman, author of Matches

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