A Short Book Review: Blindness

Blindness - José Saramago

Basically, this was a summer reading assignment. Generally the only reviews of books I will post is because I was forced to read it. As much as I appreciate good literature, I will rarely read during my free time. Just sayin'.

Anyway, I'd have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The novel details the experiences of seven people coping with the circumstances of an entire country being suddenly stricken with a contagious form of blindness known as "white blindness." The premise is weird, yes, but it forces you to examine the events of the novel from a perspective that I've never had to encounter before, in which the characters under scrutiny cannot see. The novel is also extremely dark and horrifying; much of the action in the book takes place in an abandoned mental asylum where approximately 300 of the blind are interned in a feeble attempt at quarantining the first people to succumb to the blindness. As living conditions deteriorate, so does the civility of the people being kept there; this eventually leads to terrifyingly detailed scenes of gang rape, mass murder, and panic. The novel is constantly engaging, and there is a ridiculous amount of symbolism to found in everything from the mass blindness itself to a simple pair of scissors.

In summary: Go read it.