Questions About Signs Preceding the End of the World

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What is your interpretation of the many places where the word "versed" is used in the novel?

carlo By context, I thought it meant "to cross" or "to traverse", and in other places "to leave", or "to exit". Also, it seemed to not accidentally read lik…moreBy context, I thought it meant "to cross" or "to traverse", and in other places "to leave", or "to exit". Also, it seemed to not accidentally read like a noun referring to "a verse" of poetry.

I later learned from the translator's note that this was translated from a neologism. Yuri used the word "jarchar" in the Spanish original. It also sounds like moving, and also is only understandable by context. The word derives from the Arabic "kharja", which literally means exit. Kharjas were short verses written in vernacular Mozarabic and attached to the end of Arabic poems, "to serve as a bridge between cultures and languages".

What I think is most beautiful is that you mustn't know any of this to realize that "to verse" meant exactly "to cross" and "to bridge through language". As crossing is readily seen in her actions, and bridging people in her intentions.(less)

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Unanswered Questions (1)

How complex is the language in this book? I'm an intermediate Spanish learner. I'm trying to decide if I could try reading this one in Spanish.

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