I liked this book, the intertwining storylines of politics, romance, and dreams made it an interesting read. While the dreaming and romantic narratives provided interesting psychological thought and emotional elements, the commentary on the political tension was my favorite element of this book.

I enjoyed that the dream narrative was not imposed upon by Freud’s psychoanalysis of dreams; it was refreshing to read about dreams without the narrative of the subconscious as the dominating discourse on the purpose of dreams. I liked the story of dreams as purposeful and symbolic; “Unfortunately, people have stopped seeing the value of dreams. We need to restore dreams to their practical vocation”, “dreams relate to our own personal emotional experience” (pg 109). It was insightful to read and made me consider the dream world as a separate reality that has ambiguous ties with our real lives. The way that Hossi appears in strangers’ dreams wearing a purple coat suggests that dreams are not just a neurological process, but a world that we all step into. 

The comments made about the dictatorship and conflict in Angola were important considerations about the nature of violence and conflict in a society. These lines, “The dictatorship is growing in the shade of your silent complicity” (pg 116), “Here in Angola the honest people are in prison, and the crooks are in charge” (pg 141), “This country is divided into people who can insist on their rights and those who don’t have rights at all” (pg 144) reflect the powerful process of oppression and how inequality persists when the powerful groups in society maintain dominance and silence those who fight it. For example, Daniel’s daughter Karinguiri demonstrates the way that the government silences and punishes people who challenge the system in place. The narrator emphasizes pacifism, “All wars imprison us. That thing you call a war of liberation was the origin of the civil war” (pg 31) and “What you get through violence remains poisoned by violence” (pg 32). By condoning the violence in Angola, the story seems to work as a critique of the tense social conditions in the country after the liberation from Portuguese control. Furthermore, the line, ““Fucking whites” Gato complained. “They steal from us for five hundred years and even after they’ve fucked off, driven out by gun and blow, they’re still trying to kill us”” (pg 28) also importantly emphasizes the harmful and lasting impact of colonialism, even once it is ‘gone’, violence and conflict continues to persist. 

“I tried explaining to him that we mustn’t confuse the government with the country. Criticizing mistakes made by the government wasn’t the same as insulting Angola and Angolans. On the contrary, I criticized the government’s errors because I dreamed of a better country” (pg 6). Daniel is fired as a journalist because he wants to criticize the government and the structural violence that oppresses Angolans. In this way, do you think the incorporation of dreams into this story offers an opportunity for censorship, or does it maybe offer a suggestion of utopia and dreaming of a better reality? How do you view these different storylines working together?