The Hour of the Star by Clarice Lispector is a short novella following our narrator, Rodrigo, as he tries to tell a story about a poor woman named Macabea. Macabea, according to Rodrigo, is an unassuming, bland, and boring woman whom he cannot help but tell the story about, despite how dreadful he finds her to be. This novel is a work of translated fiction, and it takes place in Brazil, where it was written. Through Rodrigo, we follow Macabea’s life story and witness how she is treated throughout it.
The story is narrated in first person, but the actual story being told is in third person. Lispector is masterful at exploring perspectives — the narrator speaks directly to us, the audience, but his words do not match the events occurring in Macabea’s life. Rodrigo’s misconceptions and unreliability are revealed as we look into Macabea’s life as a poor and underprivileged woman living in Brazil in the late 1900s. This novel has an interesting use of narration and perspective, making the experience incredibly distinctive. The content of the actual story involves Macabea, but the point or theme of the story is told through Rodrigo’s perspective in his narration. He believes himself to be the only person to tell this story correctly, which informs a lot of the narrative choices he makes throughout the text.
This is a story about poverty, class, and misogyny told through the perspective of someone who believes that he is higher than all of them, which makes it more interesting. It creates a more complex look into these topics as you are being told a story through someone who does not understand what they are saying. It creates a very meta and direct way of storytelling that works extremely well.
The novel is short but certainly packs a punch. It is provocative and fascinating despite featuring only a few characters and pages to work with. This novel is worth exploring topical themes through a “fresh” or different perspective. Even though it was written nearly 50 years ago, it is still extremely relevant and engaging to read.
While I think this novel is compelling, thought-provoking, and completely worth your time, the stylistic prose can be a little difficult to understand if you are not familiar with creative prose. There is also the added attribute that it is a translated work, so the translation can feel a little funky if the translator valued accuracy over flow. The style does work extremely well considering the story, but it can be jarring for the reader when beginning the novel. However, you quickly become used to the style, and I do not find it to be a turn-off to inexperienced readers. Despite this, or even because of it, I do think this novella is worth reading, especially if you are in the mood for a short but impactful read that will keep you interested and entertained.
