Memories of the Monastery

"Memories of a Monastery" is often compared to Umberto Eco's "The Name of the Rose", which was published at the same time; Saramago's novel was also translated into dozens of languages ​​and became an international bestseller, and it was for this novel that Saramago received the Nobel Prize in 1998. The epic love story of Balthazar Seven Suns and Blimunda Seven Moons unfolds against the backdrop of medieval Portugal, "for it has long been said: where there is a sun, there must be a moon, because only the harmonious combination of the two, called love, makes our earth habitable." Federico Fellini said that this was one of the most interesting novels he had ever read, and planned a film adaptation of "Memories..." - alas, it never happened. And in 1990, the opera "Balthasar and Blimunda" was staged at the La Scala theater in Milan based on "Memories...".