According to the press release, My Sweet Orange Tree has never been out of print in Brazil since it was first published in 1968. It’s a worldwide bestseller, having been translated into 19 languages… but it has been out of print in English for over 40 years, until this new translation by Alison Entrekin, published by Pushkin Press.
My Sweet Orange Tree is an autobiographical novel, based on José Mauro de Vasconcelos’ childhood in the Bangu neighbourhood of Rio de Janeiro in the 1920s. The book introduces us to Zezé, a precocious five-year-old with a tendency to play pranks on others, which often leads to him being beaten. He’ll tell others that he has the devil in him and should never have been born, yet he has charm and kindness to match his cheek.
Zezé’s family struggles to get by: there are seven siblings to provide for, but Father is out of a job, so Mother has to work as much as she can at the factory. It means there are no presents waiting this Christmas in the shoes that Zezé has left outside his bedroom door. “Having a poor father is awful!” he blurts out, not realising that his father is right there to hear him. This leaves Zezé unable to act:
I felt like racing down the street and clinging to Father’s legs, crying. Telling him I’d been mean – really, really mean. But I just stood there, not knowing what to do. I had to sit on the bed. And from there I stared at my shoes, in the same corner, as empty as could be. As empty as my heart, careening out of control.
But one of the things that’s so charming about Zezé is that he always has a plan. In this case, he decides to head out with his shoe-shine tin, to see if he can earn enough money to buy his father a gift.
Zezé also has a broad imagination to match his resourcefulness. When the family moves house, Zezé claims a sweet-orange tree in the garden for himself. He names it Pinkie, imagines he can hear it talk, and whiles away hours riding in its branches with Tom Mix and other movie cowboys of the day.
But friendship in the real world becomes increasingly important to Zezé. There are some memorable scenes as he becomes the helper of a man who visits the neighbourhood once a week to sing the latest popular songs and sell brochures of lyrics. Most important of all to Zezé, though, is his secret friendship with Manuel Valadares, a Portuguese with the finest car in the area. Time spent with him becomes an alternative to Zezé’s family life, a relationship that’s vivid on the page.
Now that I’ve read My Sweet Orange Tree, I can absolutely see why this book is so beloved. Zezé is such a charming character, and there are some truly powerful moments. I’m glad to have had the chance to read this book, and warmly recommend it to you.
Book details
My Sweet Orange Tree (1968) by José Mauro de Vasconcelos, tr. Alison Entrekin (2018), Pushkin Press, 192 pages, hardback (proof copy provided for review).
26th January 2018 at 7:55 pm
Hmmm… I don’t think I’ve ever read a Brazilian author. I almost like the cover, but I notice the word “charming” crops up twice in your review. Do you think this is the right kind of book for a reader who doesn’t always love “charming”?
16th March 2018 at 11:56 am
I don’t always like “charming” either, but this one I really did. There is a dark streak to the book which perhaps I didn’t bring out enough (I don’t have my copy to hand, but the subtitle is something like “the story of a boy who discovered pain”), so yes, I think it might be worth your while.
27th January 2018 at 3:44 pm
I have fond memories of this book. I read it when I was something like 10 or 12. It was published in a children collection.
If you enjoyed this one, I recommend Swammi and Friends by RK Narayan. (available in an omnibus book of Narayan’s work that I warmly recommend as well)
16th March 2018 at 11:58 am
Thanks for your comment, Emma. I felt when I was reading the book that it’s one I would have liked as a child. I’ve seen a couple of books by Narayan in the library, so I’ll check them out.