Books for the Road: Portugal

15 books about Portugal to read before you go

Have you ever considered traveling to Portugal? Portugal is known for its brilliant architecture, vibrant atmosphere, and stellar cuisine. It has a unique history and cultural heritage that blends regional influences from Spain, Northern Africa, and more. If you want to learn more about its history and dream of its picturesque landscapes, here are 15 best books about Portugal to read before you go:

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1. The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis (1984) by Nobel Prize-winner José Saramago. 

   Saramago takes readers back to 1933, a turbulent time in Portugal where Fascism was about to force the whole nation into civil war. 

   Ricardo Reis is a doctor who returns to Portugal after living in Brazil for more than a decade. He reconnects with three other individuals, one dead and two alive. One of them is also an old-time friend named Fernando Pessoa. He guides him through an intellectual journey while strolling the melancholic and rainy streets of Lisbon. 

   Saramago was the first Portuguese writer to win the Nobel Prize in Literature for his work in 1998. He was a journalist, poet, translator, and novelist, whose work has been translated in 25 different languages. Other popular titles by José Saramago worth considering include Baltasar and Blimunda and Skylight. There are never too many stories based in the colorful and vibrant Lisbon. 

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2. Take Six (Six Portuguese Women Writers (2018) by Margaret Jull Costa

This collection is the celebration of six well-known female Portuguese writers: Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen, Agustina Bessa-Luís, Maria Judite de Carvalho, Hélia Correia, Teolinda Gersão and Lídia Jorge. The writing techniques and overall narratives differ considerably; however, one element they all have in common is how they express stories about their everyday living from a modern perspective. As most of the Portuguese books and novels, especially those of women, are less frequently translated into English, these chronicles portray Portugal's intriguing beauty from a uniquely female perspective.

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The High Mountains of Portugal (2016) by Yann Martel

This New York Times Bestseller is set in three different times. These three stories are intertwined thanks to the discovery of a mysterious journal that leads to an unknown treasure. Set in 1904 Lisbon, a young man named Tomás embarks on an adventure to find this treasure. Thirty-five years later a Portugues Pathologist finds himself in the middle of a mystery related to Tomas’ quest. Then, fifty years later a Canadian expat living in northern Portugal reaches an unexpected conclusion to this 100-year-long mystery.

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4. 300 Days of Sun (2016) by Deborah Lawrenson

Dying to picture what living in a sunny coastal Portuguese town feels like? A journalist moves to southern Portugal in the town of Faro, looking to escape an unsuccessful relationship and boring career. It doesn't take her long before meeting a younger man, who wants to know the full story of a mysterious child disappearance that happened more than 20 years ago. As a true journalist, she starts connecting pieces of this unresolved mystery, leading her to a dark game of truth this town has hidden in its sea.

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5. Night Train to Lisbon (2007) by Pascal Mercier. 

This international bestseller tells the story of Raimund Gregorius, a Latin professor at a secondary school. He calls himself a “dead language” fanatic until he finds himself saving a young woman who leads him towards reading a book by Amadeu de Prado, a Lisbon physician. Prado sends him to learn about modern-day Lisbon and the city that existed before the Carnation Revolution using this book as a guide. 

Mercier takes all its readers into a journey of self-discovery while learning about Portuguese history and major episodes that built Lisbon, with vivid descriptions of the city and its people.

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6. Requiem: A Hallucination (1991) by Antonio Tabucchi 

This fictional autobiography, part discourse, and even part cookbook is a beautiful tribute to a country and language Tabucchi fell in love with, due to its people and vibrant culture. The story revolves around the narrator’s long wait before an appointment, he seems to be daydreaming and imagining his encounter with various strangers around Lisbon. One of the strangers, known as The Guest, is the ghost of one of the most iconic Portugues writers, Fernando Pessoa.

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7. The Unknown Islands (1924) by Raul Brandão

Set in 1924, this story follows Brandão as he embarks on a summer getaway to the Azores and Madeira regions in Portugal. Astonished by the incredible landscapes and nature these islands have got to offer, he begins to write down imaginary stories of events that could have happened on these lands.  

This book is considered as one of the greatest tributes to the Azorean archipelago, Portugal’s beauty, and travel literature written in the Portuguese language.

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8. The Return (2012)  by Dulce Maria Cardoso

This novel is set in Luanda in the year 1975 when The Angolan War of Independence was ongoing for more than ten years. As the Portuguese are about to be defeated, Rui, a 15-year-old young man, and his family evade violence and brutality coming from the local rebels. Although he is scared of leaving behind his entire life in Luanda, he is eager to explore the place he has heard so many stories about. The journey and growth from personal struggles, family issues, new beginnings, and discriminations for being different, tell a story about the reality of returnee existence.

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9. Tales from the Mountain (1991) by Miguel Torga 

These 45 entertaining, crisp, and insightful stories about life of a small farming community in a remote Northeast region of Portugal, which struggles with poverty, violence, and hopelessness. Torga, considered a master of Portuguese words, is able to construct such a narrative in the arid hills of Trás-os-Montes (which literally translates to Over-the-Mountains) making it an instant classic.

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10. The Last Kabbalist of Lisbon (1996) by Richard Zimler

This international bestseller takes its readers to the world of Jewish Kabbalah in the year 1506, where a horrific massacre occurred in Lisbon. The book narrates the life of Jewish communities living in Portugal before the tragedy, where many were forced to convert to Christianity in order to be accepted and peacefully reside in the lands. Many of the new incomers, would secretly maintain their Jewish rituals, even with the great risk it meant.

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11. The Illustrious House of Ramires (1990) by José Maria de Eça de Queiroz

The main character in this witty novel, Gonçalo Ramires, comes from a line of nobility and recounts life where he lives in Santa Ireneia’s most ancient building in Portugal. Ironic comedy is the main theme, and it has been hailed as a, a masterpiece in modern Portuguese literature. José Maria de Eça de Queirós is a Portuguese novelist known for striving towards social reform by introducing naturalism and realism in Portugal. Other popular titles by José Maria de Eça de Queiroz worth considering include The Maias and The Crime of Father Amaro.

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12. A Small Death in Lisbon by Robert Wilson

Switching between 1941 and 1999, the reader follows the story of a German industrialist who moves to Lisbon for business reasons at the peak of World War II and the brutal murder mystery of a young woman along with a liberal police officer. The incredible narrative guides readers through Lisbon’s history, with the perspective of German and Portuguese during World War II, and the aftermath of the 1974 revolution.

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13. Cork Boat by John Pollack

Cork boat is a memoir about a speechwriter, who embarks on an imaginable adventure to sail down the Douro River in Portugal with a boat made out of cork. He starts his journey by convincing regular bartenders to save and gift their corks and after gathering more than 160,000 of them, he is able to make history along with his hard-working crew. This wonderful and unusually humorous tale is unforgettable.

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14. Alentejo Blue by Monica Ali

Monica Ali is a British bestselling novelist of Bangladeshi origin and her work has been translated into 36 different languages. Although not her most recognized novel, Alentejo Blue is a wonderful chronicle evoking belonging and exile in one. Set in Mamarrosa, a small and remote Portuguese village with a soon-to-be rebellious community. Although the small village appears as tranquil, serene, and peaceful, the arrival of Marco Afonso Rodriguez, the village's son and a symbol of modern civilization stirs up jealousies, passions, and disappointments that were destined to collide within the members of the community.

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15. The Anarchist Banker: And Other Portuguese Stories (1996) by Eugénio Lisboa 

This set of late-19th and 20th-century novellas and stories based before World War II in Portugal include: 

• The Idiosyncrasies of a Young Blonde Woman’ by Eca de Queiros

• Suze by Antonio Patricio

• The Anarchist Banker by Fernando Pessoa 

• The Lover Irene Lisboa

• Leah by Jose Rodrigues Migueis

While reading your way through the best books on Portugal are you interested in visiting this magnificent place? Get a taste of Portugal by celebrating its art and architecture, enjoying its food and wine, and the warmth of Portuguese people in your next traveling plans. 

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