that's the name of the book i just finished reading .. it's by a guy called ismail kadare .. according to the "about the author" page in the book he's supposed to be albania's greatest living poet and novelist .. and his book was banned upon release .. the back of the book contains quotes about it being a "daring novel" about totalitarianism and they even say "orwell never went this far" and this is "a poem of hell, a terrifying vision of tyranny" .. so i thought hey this book seems cool .. boy was i wrong.
it really is true .. don't ever judge a book by its cover .. except when choosing a lover lol .. serious again .. i hated the book .. well i thought the idea was actually very clever but the problem is that the plot is a total snooze .. the book is about a guy from a prestigious family who is hired to work in the tabir sarrail (the palace of dreams) .. the palace is where citizens of the empire send their dreams so that they may be analyzed and interpreted and utilized and bla bla .. the story is about how his world turns upside down after he starts working there .. the concept of the palace is that it's supposed to represent the thought police .. a tool of oppression if you will .. ooh sounds interesting right .. but unfortunately it isn't .. i just thought the book was absolutely boring and a complete waste of time..
further reading
6 comments:
It really sounds interesting. However, dreams are not thoughts, so what's the point of analyzing them?? how is that considered oppression?? is the book written in english or translated??
hey prudence :)
it does seem interesting doesn't it .. but things are not always what they seem lol .. i don't know i didn't like it that much but who knows maybe you will like the book.
it is originally written in albanian and the one i read is a translation of the french translation lol.
as for your other question .. the dreams are analyzed so as to find clues to the future .. kind of like an oracle if you will .. so by analyzing the dreams the empire might avert a war or a plague, or predict a disaster, etc. .. so it sounds like the palace is a good place .. which brings me to your next question .. how is that considered oppression .. we learn during the story that sometimes the palace imprisons people if their dreams are considered objectionable.
it's really a complicated novel i can't explain it to you .. you will just have to read it .. refer to the further reading link i provided if you are interested :D
Mohammed,
Why don't you say that you are too stupid to understand the book or too tasteless to enjoy it.
Palace of the Dreams is one of the best books ever written. I enjoyed reading it immensely.
What kind of books do you like? "Harry Poter" or "How ben Laden married my camel".
An empire managed based on dreams is the kingdom of absurd, one of the best ideas in literature ever.
But, you are too Hollywood-type to like it.
So long
lol yeah i'm mister hollywood :p
you liked the book good for you .. just because you liked it doesn't mean i have to like it :p
as i said i found the idea interesting but i thought the plot was a total snooze.
p.s. take a look at my profile if you want to know what books i like :)
The idea of this book did inspire some hollywood movies(ironically), there's a movie called "minority report" which basically uses the same idea only without the "political" dimension. I read the review in your link. I find this magical realism concept too absurd to grasp. I prefer literature that is well written and fathomable, that is not to say dull..but exciting in a logical way! Perhaps a part of the book's charm was lost thru interpretations!! I'll take a look at it the first chance i get.
yeah minority report .. not a bad movie actually.
if you do get a chance to read the book .. come back and tell me what you thought :)
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