March 2020: Brazil and the Netherlands
Read: The Eternal Son by Cristovao Tezza (Brazil), A Letter for the King by Tonke Dragt (Netherlands) When I hear the word ‘Brazil,’ images of beautiful, cavaliering, elegant football spring immediately to mind. Their yellow shirts mirror the sunny joy that their football brings me and whenever a World Cup comes around, their fixtures are ones that I make sure I’m on the sofa for and however dull the actual match, I never lose the anticipation of seeing them again. When I asked my Brazilian friend, Lynn, for a book recommendation, subconsciously, I think I expected the novel to mirror the excitement of its football team as if Brazilian life is perpetually exciting and joyous. Cristavao Tezza’s autobiographical novel had nothing of the atmosphere that I have just described, but it is an important lesson to keep learning: to not live as if nonsensical stereotypes are actually all there is. I’ve made the mistake before. At university, I took a course in African litera...