I didn’t read the book, but watched the eponymous movie. But just how are we supposed to react to this? Night Train to Lisbon is a philosophical novel by Swiss writer Pascal Mercier. And third one by bus in the South from Seville … The story starts well with this call to adventure, this woman on the bridge ... but in fact, not much is happening; very quickly the story is nothing more adventurous, lyrical and epic (which I expected). I thought the book was really slow and the chracater of Amadeu Prado was not that interesting for me, so I chose to not finish the book and see the movie, where the phone number doesn't show up at all (neither his love to the Portuguese language.). His investigations lead him all over the city of Lisbon, as he speaks to those who were entangled in Prado’s life. "As the stories of Gregorius and de Prado draw together, this becomes a moving meditation on the defining moments in our lives, the "silent explosions that change everything." After the conferral of his doctorate, Bieri worked as a scientific assistant at the Philosophical Seminar at University of Heidelberg. [I note that the book ends with Prado’s total disillusionment. All rights reserved. Night Train to Lisbon follows Raimund Gregorius, a 57-year-old Classics scholar, on a journey that takes him across Europe. Ago._Sett,.- Treno di notte per Lisbona di Pascal Mercier, West African Culture Meets Feminist Magic in Debut YA Fantasy. Lusitania: Night train from Madrid to Lisbon. According to Grove Press, Night Train to Lisbon has rung up "over two million copies sold worldwide" and has been lavishly reviewed throughout Europe. The cost of tickets can vary depending on the time of day, route and class you book and are usually more expensive if you book on the day. Night Train to Lisbon (Book) : Mercier, Pascal : Former Latin teacher Raimund Gregorius boards the night train to Lisbon, carrying with him a book by Amadeu de Prado, with whose work he becomes obsessed, and journeys all over the city in search of the truth about the author. Translator's fault, in part? He buys a book she was carrying written by a doctor in Lisbon. He quits his dull job of many years (in the same school he attended as a boy) and hops a train to Lisbon even though he doesn’t even speak Portuguese. Synopsis. Night Train to Lisbon (Book) : Mercier, Pascal : A solitary Latin teacher at a Swiss college abandons his old life to start a new one after a chance encounter with a mysterious Portuguese woman. "Having situated himself on the disputed border between fact and fiction, Pascal Mercier now takes his rightful place among our finest European novelists." [What do you think happened to Gregorius - is he really ill? His object of pursuit shifts from the young woman to the author of the book. While walking over a bridge on his way to a local university, Raimund Gregorius (Jeremy Irons), a Swiss professor of ancient languages, notices a young woman in a red coat standing on the railing, about to jump. Just $12 for 3 months or Prado's bathetic meditations fill the pages of this novel: a source of continual inspiration for Gregorius, these sections were a source of almost sickening agitation for me. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of, Published A major hit in Germany that went on to become one of Europe’s biggest literary blockbusters in the last five years, Night Train to Lisbon is an astonishing novel, a compelling exploration of consciousness, the possibility of truly understanding another person, and the ability of language to define our very selves. "Reading this book, I was reminded how, years ago in an undergraduate creative-writing class, a young woman blurted out, “Yes, yes, but when do you make the writing grandiose?” “Never!” I answered, perhaps too quickly. Night Train to Lisbon was adapted into Bille August’s award-winning 2013 film starring Jeremy Irons, Lena Olin, Christopher Lee, and Charlotte Rampling. "Even so, this cannot explain the absence of narrative tension, or Mercier’s grandiose style (eyes shine “like black diamonds” and words are “worn grooves of babble [which] incessantly flash”). I found it to be about too many different things, and some of the possible story-lines are opened up, and then go nowhere. Abandoning his job and his life and travelling with a dusty old book as his talisman, he heads for Lisbon in search of clues to the life of the book… BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY NOV 5, 2007 In Swiss novelist Mercier's U.S. debut, Raimund Gregorius is a gifted but dull 57-year-old high school classical languages teacher in Switzerland. I’ve gone a bit off writing reviews lately. See all 6 questions about Night Train to Lisbon…, Best German/Austrian/Swiss Literature of the 21st Century, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License, Night Train to Lisbon by Pascal Mercier - 3.5 Stars Rounded to 4, [Horizons] Night Train to Lisbon by Pascal Mercier - 3 stars, 4°GdL. Click Here to find out who said this, as well as discovering other famous literary quotes! ‎Night Train to Lisbon is a sensuous tale of the pursuit of love and passion against all odds, set in the 1930s when the world was on the brink of war and suspicion of loyalty, motivation, and intent -- to both country and lover -- was at flood tide. Night Train to Lisbon is a philosophical novel by Swiss writer Pascal Mercier.It recounts the travels of Swiss Classics instructor Raimund Gregorius as he explores the life of Amadeu de Prado, a Portuguese doctor, during António de Oliveira Salazar's right-wing dictatorship in Portugal. More Books, Published in USA  He finds himself re-evaluating his life and decides that he’s going to walk away from his job and take a trip to Lisbon. Swiss Professor Raimund Gregorius (Jeremy Irons) abandons his lectures and buttoned-down life to embark on a thrilling adventure that will take him on a journey to the very heart of himself. Oomph. Night Train to Lisbon is his third novel. A story like this only comes along once every few years and storytelling like this is just as rare. Directed by Bille August. 9780802143976 - Night Train to Lisbon: a Novel by Mercier, Pascal - AbeBooks It's not bad, but I find that we are doing too much around this novel. The SNCF Railway Timetable. Inexplicably bad. Great story, but how is the book? First one by night train from Madrid or Irun to Lisbon. Information at BookBrowse.com is published with the permission of the copyright holder or their agent. Full access is for members only. At times Night Train to Lisbon can feel somewhat generic and cliched, but is saved, predominantly, thanks to the credentials of this remarkable, international cast. To see what your friends thought of this book. Last night, I finished reading Night Train to Lisbon, by Pascal Mercier. In most cases, the reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. It's an intelligent book, all right, but there's barely a breath of life in it." Refresh and try again. Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read. How did words do that? 496 pages Recommend you read the book. A huge international bestseller, with over 2 million copies sold worldwide, Night Train to Lisbon is an utterly compelling novel about one man's escape from a humdrum life in search of passion and spontaneity.Night Train to Lisbon tells the story of mild-mannered, middle-aged Classics scholar Raimund Gregorius. Nachtzug nach Lissabon = Night Train to Lisbon, Pascal Mercier, I LOVED this book. If you are the publisher or author and feel that the reviews shown do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, please send us a message with the mainstream media reviews that you would like to see added. Night Train to Lisbon is a sensuous tale of the pursuit of love and passion against all odds, set in the 1930s when the world was on the brink of war and suspicion of loyalty, motivation, and intent -- to both country and lover -- was at flood tide. More Information | © BookBrowse LLC 1997-2021. The idea for The Gilded Ones came to author Namina Forna in a dream. A very well-respected Swiss professor stops a woman from jumping off a bridge to her death. I didn't want this book to end, which is very meta because it is a book about a lover of literature who falls in love with an out-of-print memoir from a kindred spirit. A very philosophical book -- it asks the reader to imagine what would happen if you questioned everything about your life and started a new existence. Securing himself in his own house and ignoring the ringing phone and the knocking at his door he begins to translate passages from the book using a language dictionary. This is an ambitious book - about many different things - you can read it for the story itself or see it as a book about relationships and the search for meaning in life, but you could interpret it differently. One day he stops a despondent young woman from jumping off a bridge. in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. At least for me. Train ticket prices from Lisbon to London can start from as little as €215.10 when you book in advance. I've been running around quoting "Given that we can live only a small part of what there is in us - what happens to the rest? - Kirkus Reviews. At times beautifully written and profound, but in the end I found the book a little frustrating and unsatisfying. I am also really intrigued by it. Gradually, the picture of an extraordinary man emerges—a doctor and poet who rebelled against Salazar’s dictatorship. The premise had promise, and some of the characters we, The book suffers from significant problems. Summary Raimund Gregorius teaches classical languages at a Swiss lycée, and lives a life governed by routine. The author of the book is Pascal Mercier, the nom de plum of Peter Bieri, an outstanding scholar, philosopher and word-smith, who apart from his academic writing has written four novels, which not surprisingly explore philosophical questions. Bern, Switzerland. It recounts the travels of Swiss Classics instructor Raimund Gregorius as he explores the life of Amadeu de Prado, a Portuguese doctor, during António de Oliveira Salazar's right-wing dictatorship in Portugal. ... NIGHT TRAIN TO LISBON. She leaves him, with her coat, which contains a small autobiographical book and a train ticket to Lisbon, leaving … The hype for this book (over two million copies sold) is inexplicable. - Library Journal. by Grove Press. One day, a chance encounter with a Portuguese woman inspires him to question his life—and leads him to an extraordinary book that will open the possibility of changing it. It's a philosophical novel about a language teacher, Raimund Gregorious, who is propelled by a combination of events on a quest to explore the life of Amadeu de Prado, a Portuguese physician and writer who was a member of the 1960s political resistance against the Salazar dictatorship. Raimund Gregorius is a Latin teacher at a Swiss college who one day—after a chance encounter with a mysterious Portuguese woman—abandons his old life to start a new one. I know I will go back to this one to reread passages. This is a book which can be read on different levels! Pascal Mercier is the pen name of the Swiss writer and philosopher Peter Bieri who was born in Berne, Switzerland, in June 1944. Raimund Gregorius teaches classical languages at a Swiss lycée, and lives a life governed by routine. And what was that telephone number the Portuguese woman wrote on his forehead - he never called it - what was the point of that? Night Train to Lisbon: A Novel by Pascal Mercier and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at AbeBooks.com. The recurring image was one of a young girl in armor walking up a... A huge international best seller, this ambitious novel plumbs the depths of our shared humanity to offer up a breathtaking insight into life, love, and literature itself. Visitors can view some of BookBrowse for free. - Daily Telegraph. Some lines, I just think: What??!!! A huge international best seller, this ambitious novel plumbs the depths of our shared humanity to offer up a breathtaking insight into life, love, and literature itself. Pascal Mercier is the pen name of Peter Bieri, a professor of philosophy. Raimund Gregorius is an expert in ancient languages (Latin, Greek and Hebrew) who teaches at a college in Bern, Switzerland. Publication Information. ‘Night train to Lisbon’ is based on an international best selling book of the same name, first published in German in 2004. Genre: Novels Wasn't it like magic?" The hype for this book (over two million copies sold) is inexplicable. . We’d love your help. Night Train to Lisbon (Book) : Grayson, Emily : Night Train to Lisbon is a sensuous tale of the pursuit of love and passion against all odds, set in the 1930s when the world was on the brink of war and suspicion of loyalty, motivation, and intent -- to both country and lover -- was at flood tide. -John Leonard, Harper's Magazine 'Celebrates the beauty and allure of language . So begins this strangely beguiling tale. His investigations lead him all over the city of Lisbon, as he speaks to those who were entangled in Prado’s life. This strange start to his day gives rise to something of an epiphany for Raimund who then also leaves the school, abandoning his class. A major hit in Germany that went on to become one of Europe’s biggest literary blockbusters in the last five years, Night Train to Lisbon is an astonishing novel, a compelling exploration of consciousness, the possibility of truly understanding another person, and the ability of language to define our very selves. Just saw the movie with Jeremy Irons. A teacher of dead languages (Latin, Greek) at a Swiss prep school has no real friends or even much of a life to speak of. Night Train to Lisbon follows Raimund Gregorius, a 57-year-old Classics scholar, on a journey that takes him across Europe. Coming from a Philosophy professor, I was a bit skeptical to get into the book first, but then I was drawn into the book when the protagonist, Gregorius, also a professor, leaves his stagnant and monotonous life behind on an impulse, and boards a train for Lisbon, to understand the tragic end of a writer. Raimund, now obsessed with unlocking the mystery behind the man, is determined to meet all those on whom Prado left an indelible mark. Although the central character Gregorius is a classical linguist with a supposedly impregnable gift for recognizing and treasuring beautiful poetry, the entire story here hinges on his suddenly fleeing his life in pursuit of an elusive and patently insipid author named Amadeu Prado. I wanted to like - nay, love - this, because an old man at a bar recommended it to me as a book that had changed his life. Sample rhetoric: "Gregorious was never to forget this scene. But the story pulled me in. Dropping his briefcase, he runs and pulls her down. Second one in the North from Vigo to Porto. Based on the 2004 novel Night Train to Lisbon by Pascal Mercier and written by Greg Latter and Ulrich Herrmann, the film is about a Swiss teacher who saves the life of a woman and then abandons his teaching career and reserved life to embark on a thrilling intellectual adventure that takes him on a journey to the very heart of himself. This book took me a long, long time to read, but I am glad I stuck with it. From there he was awarded a doctoral degree for his work on the philosophy of time. The book suffers from significant problems. The story is philosophical, and I admit that I was a little bored. Night Train to Lisbon (DVD) : Latin teacher Raimund Gregorius finds a book by Portuguese poet and doctor Amadeu de Prado and his life is irrevocably changed. Instead, I found myself desperate to be done with it. For her question pointed to the widespread notion that literary language should be elevated above everyday discourse and elevated in a way that justifies her guileless choice of adjective. Portuguese, you see, is the one language he doesn't know, and he. In short, this story, even if it is well written, is not really my cup of tea: not enough adventure, epic, feelings or emotions. That same night, he takes the train to Lisbon to research the book’s phantom author, Amadeu de Prado, a renowned physician whose principles led him to confront Salazar’s dictatorship. He invites the woman to attend his morning class - something completely out of character for this highly regimented man - but soon after she disappears. He takes the night train to Lisbon and carries with him a book by Amadeu de Prado, a (fictional) Portuguese doctor and essayist whose writings explore the ideas of loneliness, mortality, death, friendship, love, and loyalty. Carson Weatherell is a privileged young American woman traveling in Europe in 1936, courtesy of her aunt and uncle who live ab Article $39 for a year. Wonderful coverage of the ending of the Portuguese dictatorship back in the 1970s. As Gregorius becomes fascinated with unlocking the mystery of who Prado was, an extraordinary tale unfolds. It is forbidden to copy anything for publication elsewhere without written permission from the copyright holder. Nevertheless, I recommend reading Pessoa's, “Life is not what we live; it is what we imagine we are living.”. Gradually, the picture of an extraordinary man emerges—a doctor and poet who rebelled against Salazar’s dictatorship. Finding his way to an antiquarian bookstore he buys a book written in Portuguese, a language unfamiliar to him, written by a man named Amadeu de Prado. Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published. One day the 57 year old divorcee meets an enigmatic Portuguese woman on his way to work, she’s distressed and possibly contemplating suicide. An elegant meditative book teaches a painfully ironic life lesson in German-Swiss author Mercier’s searching 2004 novel, a critically acclaimed international bestseller being published in the United States for the first time. There, it is attached to the Sud Express and both trains continue to Lisbon. Find books by time period, setting & theme, Read-alike suggestions by book and author. He packs his bag and takes a night train to Lisbon. With Jeremy Irons, Mélanie Laurent, Jack Huston, Martina Gedeck. "An intriguing fiction only occasionally diluted by redundancy and by Mercier's overuse of the metaphor of a train journey." After all his inner mind gazing, after all his bravery at confronting difficult ideas and doing hard deeds, he finds himself feeling totally lost and empty. They were his first Portuguese words in the real world and they worked. adroitly addresses concepts of sacrifice, secrets, … Even those reviewers who could empathise with boring Gregorius, the novel's 'hero,' have had to concede that a lumpen translation and countless errors that passed the spellchecker (but wouldn't have escaped a mildly conscientious proof reader) make this a challenging read. “We leave something of ourselves behind when we leave a place, we stay there, even though we go away. Recommended for all fiction collections." Reviews | Start by marking “Night Train to Lisbon” as Want to Read: Error rating book. "Possibly, Mercier's American publisher thinks that his fiction offers the kind of intellectual puzzles and trickery that many readers love in the work of Umberto Eco, but there are no such pleasures to be found here. The novel Night Train to Lisbon by Pascal Mercier that I picked for today’s review deals with such choices and what makes us take them. He invites the woman to attend his morning class - something completely out of character for this highly regimented man - but soon after she disappears. Search String: Summary | On the other hand, this book made me want to write something to put my thoughts on it into some shape. Talent hits a target no one else can hit; Genius hits a target no one else can see. We become tired and weary of our feelings when they come too often and last too long.”, Premio Grinzane Cavour for Narrativa Straniera (2007). Click here and be the first to review this book! Become a Member and discover books that entertain, engage & enlighten. Although the central character Gregorius is a classical linguist with a supposedly impregnable gift for recognizing and treasuring beautiful poetry, the entire story here hinges on his suddenly fleeing his life in pursuit of an elusive and patently insipid author named Amadeu Prado. The main character, Gregorius, an uptight teacher of classical languages at a Swiss school, inexplicably quits his job and drops everything after a chance encounter with a mysterious Portuguese woman. I noticed that this book evokes very different reactions, from admiration to disgust, and oddly enough, this is also one of the themes of the book: how different the perception of people can be, especially about each other; close friends, partners, even very close family can see or feel each other fundamentally 'wrong'. Bieri studied philosophy, English studies and Indian studies in both London and Heidelberg. Free download or read online Night Train to Lisbon pdf (ePUB) book. They make the novel particularly ponderous." When, on a whim, I threw everything away to wander thousands of miles from anything I've ever known, I first went to Lisbon because of this book. The English translation from the German is wooden; the book is too long; the editing is bad (e.g., a Greek word from Homer that is significant to the plot is misread [I hope] from the author's or translator's manuscript and mangled in print); and the endgame is botched (to borrow from the omnipresent chess references that weigh the book down almost as much as the endless poor imitations of Pessoa). Who knows. A major hit in Germany that went on to become one of Europe’s biggest literary blockbusters in the last five years, Night Train to Lisbon is an astonishing novel, a compelling exploration of consciousness, the possibility of truly understanding another person, and the ability of language to define our very selves. Who knows. Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account. A huge international best seller, this ambitious novel plumbs the depths of our hared humanity to offer up a breathtaking insight into life, love, and literature itself. I wanted to like - nay, love - this, because an old man at a bar recommended it to me as a book that had changed his life. December 21st 2007 And there are things in us that we can find again only by going back there.”, “A feeling is no longer the same when it comes the second time. Much more depth of course, but I just saw the movie for the second time and loved it just as much as the first time. Dec 2007 - Los Angeles Times. Welcome back. The premise had promise, and some of the characters were not without interest (hence my two stars). "Long philosophical interludes in Prado's voice may not play as well in the U.S., but the book comes through on the enigmas of trying to live and write under fascism." people interested in language, or Portuguese political history, or thoughtful mysteries. Gregorius becomes obsessed by what he reads and restlessly struggles to comprehend the life of the author. The main character, Gregorius, an uptight teacher of classical languages at a Swiss school, inexplicably quits his job and drops everything after a chance encounter with a mysterious Portuguese woman. Author Translator's fault, in part? To many, if not most, readers today, grandiosity and its associated qualities – pomposity, verbosity, prolixity, pedantry and melodrama – are not off-putting but the hallmarks of great literature." One day, a chance encounter with an enigmatic Portuguese woman inspires him to question his life—and leads him to an extraordinary book that will open the possibility of changing his existence. This information about Night Train to Lisbon shown above was first featured Portuguese, you see, is the one language he doesn't know, and he sets off to pursue it, and her. This strange start to his day gives rise to something of an epiphany for Raimund. What a fabulous book. Carson Weatherell is a privileged young… Raimund Gregorius is a Latin teacher at a Swiss college who one day—after a chance encounter with a mysterious Portuguese woman—abandons his old life to start a new one. Title Some lines are priceless. The English translation from the German is wooden; the book is too long; the editing is bad (e.g., a Greek word from Homer that is significant to the plot is misread [I hope] from the author's or translator's manuscript and mangled in print); and the endgame is botched (to borrow from the omnipresent chess references that weigh the book down almost as much as the endless poor imitations of Pessoa). His life, it turns out, has been a fraud. Night Train to Lisbon never engages the reader, in particular never makes the reader care about Gregorius. Night Train to Lisbon (Book) : Mercier, Pascal : Former Latin teacher Raimund Gregorius boards the night train to Lisbon, carrying with him a book by Amadeu de Prado, with whose work he becomes obsessed, and journeys all over the city in search of the truth about the author. He takes the night train to Lisbon and carries with him a book by Amadeu de Prado, a (fictional) Portuguese doctor and essayist whose writings explore the ideas of loneliness, mortality, death, friendship, love, and loyalty. I can think about a paragraph and the import of those lines OR I can read it for the story from start to finish. [As the story progresses, the protagonist starts to experience increasing bouts of dizziness, as if he is losing his sense of place in the world. It departs from Chamartin station in the north of Madrid and runs via Avila to Medina de Campo. To travel by train from Salamanca in Spain to Lisbon in Portugal, you have three options. Inspired by the words of Amadeu de Prado, a doctor whose intelligence and magnetism left a mark on everyone who met him and whose principles led him into a confrontation with Salazar's dictatorship, Gregorius boards a train to Lisbon. - The Washington Post, Jonathan Yardley. Prado's bathetic meditations fill the pages of this novel: a source of continual inspiration for Gregorius, these sections were a source of almos. It dies through the awareness of its return. Choose the best one for you. . - Publishers Weekly. A brilliant joyride in the company of three sister-wives with nothing in common except their dead husband. Search: One day the 57 year old divorcee meets an enigmatic Portuguese woman on his way to work, she’s distressed and possibly contemplating suicide. It is an introspective, self examining, philosophical soul searching journal. [but] what Night Train to Lisbon really suggests is Roads to Freedom, Jean-Paul Sartre's breathless trilogy about identity-making.' That was last September, and by November I had traipsed through neighboring Spain and south into Africa, though, I've since been back to the city of Lisbon, and furthermore to this book. The protagonist, like me, dreads finishing his treasured book. The language is so grandiose - I believe it has been labeled a 'philosophical novel' - that I found myself laughing in dismay. Instead, I found myself desperate to be done with it. Night Train to Lisbon (Book) : Mercier, Pascal : A huge international best seller, this ambitious novel plumbs the depths of our shared humanity to offer up a breathtaking insight into life, love, and literature itself. A major hit in Germany that went on to become one of Europe’s biggest literary blockbusters in the last five years, Night Train to Lisbon is an astonishing novel, a compelling exploration of consciousness. Quiet, slow, mysterious, melancholical. Apparently, Page des Libraires calls this 'One of the great European novels of the past few years'- compared to what? She is Portuguese and he then begins reading a work by a Portuguese author and becomes obsessed with finding out about the author. Subscribe to receive some of our best reviews, "beyond the book" articles, book club info, and giveaways by email. The Lusitania night train connects Madrid and Lisbon overnight and is the only train connection between the two capitals. That words could cause something in the world, make someone move or stop, laugh or cry: even as a child he had found it enigmatic and it had never stopped impressing him. ", Raimund Gregorius is an expert in ancient languages (Latin, Greek and Hebrew) who teaches at a college in Bern, Switzerland. - New Statesman. Gregorius becomes obsessed by what he reads and restlessly struggles to comprehend the life of the author. Inexplicably bad. I thought the book was really slow and the chracater of Amadeu Prado was not that interesting for me, so I chose to, I am also really intrigued by it.
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