Argentina - The Invention of Morel - Adolfo Bioy Casares.

Following on from Argentina's win in the World Cup (Men's football), I did some research into Argentine science fiction authors and found the above and ordered a second hand copy.

This was only a short book, I think it is listed as a novella, but i'm not sure what defines a novella., but the book was 103 pages, and a narrower book than usual paper backs. This copy was translated, expertly, by Ruth L. C. Simms.

As far as ticking boxes for this project, it didn't refer to Argentina, or Argentinian culture or history so this book simply ticks off an other country.

The story it's self was OK, introduced me to something new, that I hadn't come across in science fiction books, but i can't say what without giving away large parts of the plot, and telling you exactly what 'the invention of Morel' is!

The lead character, 'the fugitive' is a very unlikable, paranoid, self obsessed, half wit. As the story moves along, myself, as the reader made conclusions quickly and easily, and the main character, was way off the mark, and just staring at his own shoes, like a melancholic emo kid at a my chemical romance gig. I don't know if this makes it a great book, as if not often i'm so irritated with a character and i'm swearing at the hapless, listless, and pathetic ball-sack of a man. Or I'm just reading this when i'm hungry with low blood sugars!

Brazil - And still the Earth - Ignacio de Loyola Brandao

Let's start with the feel of the book. My God is this depressing! what more could go wrong? how terrible can the future be? This is a super enjoyable and gripping read, but if you are looking for something light and fluffy, whimsical, or even adventurous; then I would go find another book. In short this book is set in a future dystopian version of Brazil, the rainforests have been de-forested, rivers drained up, and life is HOT, dusty, dirty and monotonous.

The book is kind of sci-fi, as it deals with a dystopian future, but this is where I see a distinction between sci-fi and science fiction, and this comes under science fiction! So it didn't draw me in like an alien encounter or space odyssey. But it ticks huge boxes for this project and blog. It's set in Brazil, and written by a Brazilian, and deals with Brazilian culture, history and geography.

I never feel qualified to comment on the actual writing of a book, I never really enjoyed studying books and writing so I never feel comfortable analysing someone else's pros. But, MY WORD this book is full of beautiful bits of writing, there was one example where the author wrote almost two pages on how the narrator and protagonist took a sip of water and then burped! TWO gloriously detailed emotional pages on a simple burp!

Huge respect and admiration for Ellen Watson, wrote translated this work too. The book had so many words that I looked up in a dictionary as they were new words to me. The narrator even comments on his love for 'ancient' words