“Before we begin to forget, we must remember, we must begin to remember.”
At the end of reading this book, you will be accompanied by only one feeling: regret for not having discovered both book and author sooner. The pages are similar to the ripples of a clear lake in which the pains of the world, the irreparable errors, the weight of responsibilities, the relationships between men and women and the questions that no one wants to answer are reflected.
A vintage jewel of Latin American literature, set in Montevideo in the 1950s, the book is the long diary of Martin Santomé, a man like many others, left behind as a young man, who now has the sole objective of retiring.
The routine of days being the same as days, with fake work problems and the role of mediator between the three now adult children, undergoes a reversal with the return of old friendships and the hiring of the young Laura Avellaneda in his office, shy and closed in a silent beauty. The relationship with the young colleague/subordinate will grow over the days until it blossoms into a tender loving relationship. Love and fear will mix, between the memories of past loves, and a very uncertain future, with an ending that we cannot tell; but we are certain they will not disappoint the reader’s expectations in terms of intensity and twists.
If the text doesn’t make you fall in love at first, keep reading it because the beauty it hides is breathtaking. The high points of the story are many, with a unique delicacy and vision of the world.
Allow us to leave you some advice, give this book to someone on your first date, if he or she doesn’t fall in love with the book, don’t let there be a second date.
We must understand that the book is a product of its time, and therefore some harsh and politically incorrect expressions (and we use a euphemism), which are anything but acceptable, must be seen in that time. Don’t let this affect the value of the reading in any way.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Mario Benedetti, La tregua, Nottetempo, Milano, 2023
Original edition: La tregua, Alfa, Montevideo, 1960