Soldiers of Salamis by Javier Cercas was a somewhat interesting novel, but I cannot say I particularly enjoyed the plot. I found the narration to have a very slow rhythm which didn’t keep me engaged and the many specific details about the story were hard to keep up with. I did appreciate that the novel is divided into three stories that intertwine. Parallel or related streams of narration always add a multidimensional aspect that enhances the story – in my opinion. In the first part, Cercas tells the story of his search for Mazas’ history, of his life as a writer, and of his investigations. The second section focuses on Mazas’ actual life and his escape from a group of Republicans during the Spanish Civil War. Lastly, the third part is the description of Cercas’ interactions with Miralles – who is thought to be the soldier who spared Mazas during the civil war. The three parts offer different facets to the story that make it more entertaining for the reader, however, I found Cercas’ way of approaching a historical novel too factual. The narration is very descriptive and almost felt like I was reading Cercas’ personal diary. I have liked most novels we have read in this course, but Cercas’ was not one of them and I blame that on a few different aspects. The main one is the author’s attempt to make the events told seem as real as possible.
One part I did find very insightful was Cercas and Bolano’s discussion on what a hero is and on literary credibility. While Cercas tries to be committed to the truth and the “relato real”, Bolano appreciates a less realistic way of writing. The Chilean writer notes that memory – whether it is accurate or not – is enough to tell a story while Cercas’ passion for the truth pushes him to make his story feel historically truthful. After reflecting upon the two authors, I figured out that Cercas’ search for realism is why I didn’t enjoy his novel. I appreciated Bolano’s genuine combination of reality and fiction as it added a more dreamlike quality to Amulet. The same dreamlike quality lacked in Cercas and, in my opinion, made the narration less efficient in keeping me involved. An example of this is how the events are introduced in the second part of the novel. Cercas uses sentences like “That same day”, “Over the following days”, “At dusk on the 29th”, and “Hours later” to introduce episodes that, in my experience, ended up blending together and gave a monotone quality to the narration.
My question for the class is: did you find Cercas’ search for realism to inhibit or enhance your involvement in the story?
– Bianca