April 23rd is
World Book Day , a date chosen by UNESCO to honor authors around the world and also encourage the habit of reading. With this in mind,
CASACOR has made a selection of books for those who want to start reading – or even revive this habit – with
quick and impactful options . Below, discover 7 works that you will want to devour and finish before the day is even over:
The Weight of the Dead Bird
Author: Aline Bei This 168-page Brazilian book tells the story of a woman from 8 to 52 years old. The story is told entirely in the first person and in verse format – which makes it a quick and fluid read. In addition, the plot is very sensitive and powerful, which will bring out many feelings:
joy, anger, sadness and especially
longing .
The Head of the Saint
Author: Socorro Acioli After losing his mother, a young man travels to the city of Candeia in search of his grandmother and father – his only surviving family ties – but upon arriving in the city, the reception from the matriarch is far from friendly, and he ends up living inside a "cave" – a
giant head of Saint Anthony – where he can magically hear the prayers of the city's young women to the matchmaker saint. An engaging book with
176 pages, which promises a trip to
Juazeiro do Norte and an immersion in its customs and beliefs.
The Bicentennial Man
Author: Isaac Asimov A thought-provoking tale that will please both science fiction fans and those who are curious about the subject, Bicentennial Man is a
drama about a robot who wants to be human , and the changes he witnesses in society and also in his own body. A moving story full of metaphors in a book of less than 100 pages.
Barefoot Gen
Author: Keiji Nakazawa A
manga about the true story of Gen, who survived the bombing of Hiroshima at the end of World War II when he was still a boy. It tells about life with his family in the Japanese city and relates from a childish (and courageous) perspective the events that preceded and followed the fateful
August 6, 1945. An engaging plot, with severe social criticism of Japanese imperialism and the war, which shows in a sincere way the behind the scenes of the battles.
The Event
Author: Annie Ernaux The first woman to receive the
French Nobel Prize for Literature , Annie Ernaux tells the story of her own life in 1963, when at the age of 23 she became pregnant by her boyfriend – and without his or anyone else's support she chose to have an abortion, at a time when, in addition to being illegal, the practice was much less discussed than it is today. In
less than 100 pages , the author was able to give a shocking account and a powerful critique that placed her in a renowned position and stood out as one of the world's great contemporary authors.
Animal Farm
Author: George Orwell George Orwell,
the author of 1984 , is undoubtedly one of the most powerful names in world literature, and Animal Farm is one of his most famous works. Tired of forced labor and mistreatment, the animals on a farm rebel against humans and fight for justice and equality, but things go wrong when, even in this new
egalitarian and free system, new forms of injustice begin to appear, along with a new dominant group. The book is an example of
the author's ideological complexity .
Evidence of a Betrayal
Author: Taylor J. Read Taylor J. Read, the same author of the
bestsellers Daisy Jones and the Six and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo , has written a short story that proves that
100 pages is enough to stir up strong emotions. The
story is told in letters by two people who correspond after discovering that their respective partners are lovers. The book addresses issues of outbursts, conflicts, broken trust and even forgiveness.
