The Gnome King reviewed Saddest Pleasure by Paul Theroux
Review of 'Saddest Pleasure' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
This is a book about a journey on two levels, it is based in reality travelling through Brazil, but the bulk of the journey is done in Moritz's head as he relives important moments of his past. Moritz has been kicked off his farm by his partner Ramon due to Moritz becoming ill, now he is in exile in Quito with nothing to do, so he decides it is time to travel down/up the amazon, something he has always wanted to do. That is all we are told, you feel sorry for this old man, and disgusted with the "evil Ramon". Doing one of these long journeys is always part exploring new places and part discovering yourself, the flashbacks to Moritz's past hit him as soon as he leaves the first airport. His Dad was a real peace of work, coming from money, anything his son does is a disappointment …
This is a book about a journey on two levels, it is based in reality travelling through Brazil, but the bulk of the journey is done in Moritz's head as he relives important moments of his past. Moritz has been kicked off his farm by his partner Ramon due to Moritz becoming ill, now he is in exile in Quito with nothing to do, so he decides it is time to travel down/up the amazon, something he has always wanted to do. That is all we are told, you feel sorry for this old man, and disgusted with the "evil Ramon". Doing one of these long journeys is always part exploring new places and part discovering yourself, the flashbacks to Moritz's past hit him as soon as he leaves the first airport. His Dad was a real peace of work, coming from money, anything his son does is a disappointment to him. As the book progresses we witness many snapshots of Moritz clashing with his dad, we see him meeting Ramon, setting up the farm and finally we see the truth about the eviction, which was something Moritz wasn't aware of until the realisation hits him on this journey.
Moritz is an amazing writer, his style draws you in quickly, with each rant and "Goddamn" you get more comfortable. He doesn't shy away from anything, he does moan constantly though. There are moments in this....almost a confessional...that hit the reader hard, his desperation on the farm is heartbreaking especially when he looks at himself in the mirror for the first time in years and sees what affect the jungle has had on him.
This has got to be considered one of the great travel books based in South America, I highly recommend this as Moritz has a voice that you must experience.
Blog review> felcherman.wordpress.com/2019/06/21/the-saddest-pleasure-a-journey-on-two-rivers-by-moritz-thomsen/