The Last Will and Testament of Senhor da Silva Araujo by Germano Almeida and translated from Portuguese by Sheila Faria Glaser, was the book that I chose to read for Cape Verde. First I did not know that Cape Verde was a Portugal colony, and when I read that the book was translated from Portuguese I was a little surprised.
The book focuses on the life of Senhor Napumoceno da Silva Araujo, and how the people around him know nothing of who he is. The town and the people who know him think that he is mild bachelor, with his oddities. It is not until reading his will, that is more of a memoir that they find out he has a child, from a women that he raped. This part of the book I had a big problem with, the woman who he raped was OK with it, and came back to have a sexual relationship with Araujo that resulted in a child. That child is Maria.
Maria does not know that Sr. Araujo is her father, but when she finds out she spends time to fulfill his wishes, and to find out who he was by reading his will. I think there is something missing when a book is translated from Portuguese into English, because I did not find this book funny, it was so sad.
There is a tale in the book about an older woman who is accused of witchcraft who is beaten to death, because she is accused of eating the soul of a child who lived in the next town over.
There is also a woman named Adelia who he swears is the love of his but no one knows who she is. Not even his long term housekeeper.
QUOTES
“A closed door it like the continuation of a will, it should never be opened without permission.”
“But Carlos, with what Sr. Napumoceno considered the usual arrogance of youth, replied, but we are in Cape Verde, far from America, and here we’er in charge of time.”
Reading The World 