The Book of Questions

Product Information

It’s good news that Neruda’s question poems (39 of the original 74) have been freshly translated into English by Sara Lissa Paulson and presented for the first time in picture book form, with stylized, dreamlike illustrations by the Chilean artist Paloma Valdivia—English on one side of the page, Spanish on the other.

Would you be happier with more control over what happens in your life or more control over your response to what happens?In other words, it’s an entire book of questions that you simply9 can’t, “Google”—as pointed out by author Austin Kleon. The Beat Generation was born out of WWII, and it still continues to exert considerable influence on today’s literary scene. The questions themselves, mostly arranged as couplets, have no answers and often imaginative premises: ‘Who shouted for joy / when the color blue was born?

The questions are so different from one to the next that they never get boring, especially if you read them in the bathroom like I did. Valdivia’s colors are simply stunning: striking red, bold yellow, rich turquoise, and textured grays jump off the bright white and deep black backgrounds. And of course the meaning of it all- If you were handed an envelope with the date of your death inside, and you knew you could do nothing to alter your fate, would you look? Would highly recommend to anyone like me who enjoys asking questions and having lively conversations. Paulson’s translations of the poet’s lines are sometimes playful—“When I look once more at the sea,/ does the sea see me or not see me?

Then again, I'd take it all in stride, because their answers may vary given the time and place you ask them. Book Overview: This is a book for personal growth, a tool for deepening relationships, a lively conversation starter for the family dinner table, a fun way to pass the time in the car. I tried this with my older brother and his wife several years back but they were too close minded and guarded to be honest. Translated by Sara Lissa Paulson, this oversize book is bilingual, presenting Neruda’s questions in both English and Spanish.

All used books might have various degrees of writing, highliting and wear and tear and possibly be an ex-library with the usual stickers and stamps. The only useful application this book has for me, is as something to (lightheartedly) gauge a person's character, morals, and views of the world, depending on what answer they give. Holding the wonder and mystery of childhood and the experience and knowing that come with growing up, these questions are by turns lyrical, strange, surreal, spiritual, historical and political.Out of the totality arises a larger sense of reckoning—a person of uncommon soulfulness and sensitivity to the subterranean strata of life, approaching the end of his days with a cascade of curiosity, singing the ultimate question: What is all this?