Out of the books we’ve read thus far, Ask The Dust is the top contender for my favorite. I enjoy the writing style much more, however eclectic and odd it may be, because of the beautiful language. I noticed this as early on as page 12 with the simple quote, “Leonardo, dead now, a saint in heaven, equal to any apostle of the twelve”. My joy progressed as I found that the entire book contained many metaphors like this. Initially, I thought that with our author’s mind seemingly all over the place, that the book might be a little harder to follow. Instead, however, I found that the emphasizing of the most simple occurrences and dramatic styles of writing helped me recall why I love reading in the first place.
For example, the relationship between Arturo and Camilla. Although nothing significant happens right off the bat, it is surely significant to our main character immediately. They have the smallest interactions before they get to the big ones, but they’re all described in the same, great and eloquent detail. His description of her as a “Mayan Princess” is so sweet and beautiful, even though what he expresses to her is quite different. Although I find this hard to understand, for the way the speak to each other seems to contrast how they’re feeling, it is also refreshing from a generic love story. That seems to describe our narrator as well. He is so irrational and all over the place, and while he can be frustrating at times for his decision making, I find him refreshing also. He is a character that is easy to relate to and, I find, someone you almost want to look out for.
I did think that the chapters including Vera were quite strange and almost threw me through a loop since it seemed to deviate from the main chain of events. Every time things like this happen to Arturo, especially because of the way he describes them, I always think about how he could turn that into something to send to Hackmuth for publication. The interaction between the two people who appear to be the most lost so far kind of saddened me and made me pity both of them.
So far, I find this book very interesting and am anxious to finish it.
