The Land at the End of the World
António Lobo Antunes · b. 1942 · Portugal
Originally Os Cus de Judas (Portuguese)
Why it matters
A traumatized veteran of Portugal's colonial war in Angola unloads his rage and disgust in one unbroken monologue to a woman he's picked up for the night. Lobo Antunes's breakthrough fuses Faulkner's cascading sentence with Céline's scorched disgust into modern Portuguese fiction's founding act of witness.
At a glance
war novelpsychological novel
Difficulty 8/10slow pace288 pagesLong, digressive, near-unpunctuated sentences demand total, sustained concentration.
Where to go next
Joyce Carol Oates · 1969themLvl 6Medium pace
Bảo Ninh · 1990The Sorrow of WarLvl 6Slow burn
William Faulkner · 1930As I Lay DyingLvl 9Medium pace
Javier Marías · 1992A Heart So WhiteLvl 8Slow burn
Elfriede Jelinek · 1983The Piano TeacherLvl 7Slow burn
Louis-Ferdinand Céline · 1932Journey to the End of the NightLvl 6Fast paced