Octavio Solis > Recent Status Updates

Like returning to an old friend. This novel was a bit much for my head a few months ago when I was busy navigating over several projects. But returning to it now, I'm warmed by the sly humor running through this story of Jacob De Zoet the Dutch clerk caught in a web of intrigue and deceit far from his native shores. It's the rare novel that is dialogue-intensive, which makes it feel like like a play or film.

you can zoom right in on my lips;
you can imagine pressing yours to mine;
you can imagine how soft mine would be;
try to imagine how soft things could be;
then imagine how hard things can be;
I can make things incredibly hard;

“we’re told in our schools to devise a master plan; by master they mean pretend you’re guys; by plan, they mean forever; our master plan, we decide, is science.”

"the younger girls still think about love as arrows through hearts; and please, girls; I know about love; I know what it is; just tiny motors whirring in one's saddest, darkest parts;"

wow.

One of the finest works of nonfiction I've ever read. There is such dramatic tension in each chapter, such high stakes being played with real people's lives. Nothing is ever simple, nor are the ethical imperatives so plain, when one realizes the human cost on every side of this story. The Troubles could have only happened in Northern Ireland, but this stirring account makes you feel like it's happening again.

What a marvel this book is. Each story is its own mysterious pearl. Daniel is an awesome writer.

What a marvel this book is. Each story is its own mysterious pearl. Daniel is an awesome writer.

Intriguing stories by a new master of the craft.