Pilar del Río recounts a dramatic moment in José Saramago’s career. On April 24, the eve of the Carnation Revolution’s anniversary that brought democracy to Portugal, a journalist friend informed Saramago what his newspaper planned to publish the next day: that conservative forces had removed a book by Saramago from consideration. The work, chosen by three cultural institutions to represent contemporary Portuguese literature in Spain, faced fierce opposition. The rationale from Portuguese conservatives claimed that the Gospel According to Jesus Christ offended Portuguese Catholics, painted the author as a stubborn communist, and, on top of that, accused the book of poor craftsmanship.
As days passed, pressure mounted and a reactionary media smear campaign gained momentum, aiming to restore a past where control over the news and the law rested with a few. The Vatican press joined the chorus, offended by Saramago’s depiction of the sexual act between Joseph and Mary that leads to Jesus’s birth. Solidarity from European cultural and political figures, including Jack Lang, did little to stem the tide. The strain became unbearable for the writer. Saramago later traveled to Lanzarote, a place where his brothers-in-law had settled, drawn to a town named Taís. There he found a strange, tranquil beauty—the silence of volcanoes at dusk. In response to the campaign, Saramago characterized the episode as the matter of a novel, while noting the commercial opportunism behind the controversy.
Months passed, and a new home emerged—an intimate space that would welcome two culturally exiled couples. They took advantage of a plot near a relative’s dwelling to build a modest residence that symbolized a fresh start and continued literary work in a place removed from pressure and scrutiny.
With a light suitcase in hand, Saramago began to see his office as a chamber of ideas, a house made of books overlooking the sea and framed by lava flows. He discovered a sense of freedom in that island setting despite the broader challenges. The visit of influential figures such as Portuguese president Mário Soares, who helped bring attention to the island, highlighted a moment of cultural exchange and renewal, even as tensions with local developments persisted. The landscape remained dynamic and sometimes disruptive to various sectors of society, yet the island stood as a space for reflection and renewal in a climate of pressure and scrutiny.
The writer, rooted in the village of Azinhaga, produced many of his lasting literary achievements in this setting, the body of work that would eventually earn him the Nobel Prize in Literature. A startling moment of realization came when a stewardess at a Frankfurt airport disclosed the prize to him, underscoring how chance encounters weave into a writer’s life. The Book Fair became a gathering place where his wife was urged by a committee member to stay quiet, while Saramago continued to produce deeply reflective work such as Blindness, a novel exploring perception and society. The Lanzarote notebooks and journals followed, chronicling journeys of the spirit and place—moments when the mind travels and the heart responds to the landscapes that shape a writer’s voice.
Ultimately, Pilar del Río wrote a book for friends, celebrating an intellectual who believed that the Iberian Peninsula could stand together. The idea of shared destiny appears again in the reflections found in Stone Sal, signaling a belief in unity across the region and a commitment to cultural collaboration beyond borders.
Years ago, a travel memory surfaces. A trip to Lanzarote with friends mirrored the paths Saramago walked. Two books accompanied the travelers, perhaps in case they encountered the author and wished to offer a dedication. The Traveller’s Suitcases recalled a great-grandfather who left a bold photograph behind, while a forthcoming journey through Portugal—from Tras-os-Montes to the Algarve, from Lisbon to the Alentejo—promised to reveal an authentic, inexhaustible country. Those who know Portugal understand its essence, and those who have yet to decide will find indispensable insights in these journeys.