TIETA OF AGRESTE

by Jorge Amado ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 20, 1979

Brazilian Amado (The Two Husbands of Dona Flor) has gathered something of a following by making whimsical mountains out of molehills. The basic molehill this time: Tieta, 44, lovely, newly widowed, and rich, has been away from her native Brazilian town, Agreste, for a long time--ever since she was banished in her youth by her father for easy virtue (she was a randy goatherd-ess). Now Tieta is the most prominent madam in Sao Paulo (though no one in Agreste knows this), and she returns to her little hometown as a benefactress. For instance, with a discreet word sent to one of her powerful clients, Tieta manages to get the town electric power. And when an industrial syndicate wants to locate a polluting titaniumdioxide plant in Agreste, charismatic Tieta is enrolled to lead the opposition. How does Amado make a mountain from this molehill? With 700-odd pages full of local color, folksy digression, rubes suckered by high-power sharpies, defiant fishermen, and a sweet subplot in which Tieta seduces a seminarian nephew only to find herself physically addicted to his novice vitality. This mountain is, of course, a creampuff, and Barbara Shelby Merello's clingy translation hides none of the pap and pizzazz; Amado fans will probably have a good time with the naughty high spirits, the ain't-it-the-truth peccadilloes, and the unceasing recapitulation. Pollution and modernization notwithstanding, however, it's the same old hi-caloric tropical hijinks as in earlier Amados--and you either have a taste for this sort of huge daiquiri or you don't.

Pub Date: June 20, 1979

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Knopf

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1979

Categories: FICTION