Author: Pascal Mercier
Blurb: One day mild-mannered, middle aged teacher Raimund Gregorius suddenly quits his ordinary life and, for no reason apparent to his colleagues or his students, sets off on a journey across Europe. Haunted by a mysterious old book that seems, somehow, to speak to him personally, he embarks in search of clues to the life of its enigmatic Portuguese author, Amadeu de Prado. Gradually he uncovers the life of an extraordinary man: a child prodigy, a doctor, a philosopher and a rebel. And as Gregorius learns about Prado, he also begins a process of self-discovery, looking back at his own life and the choices he has made, wondering about the man he might have been. Hurtling through the dark, Night Train to Lisbon is a profound tale, wonderfully told, propelled by the mystery at its heart.
My two cents: I picked up this book on a whim from our local Oxfam shop, intrigued by the title. I enjoyed it, but it is not a light read. Mercier is a professor of philosophy, and it shows. Really two books within one, Gregorius' story is easy to relate to: a man looking back on his life, travelling, experiencing new things and considering whether choices made in the past were the correct ones. Prado's story on the other hand, is the philosophical foil to Gregorius' self-enlightenment. It poses deep philosophical questions about the self, religion , friendship and happiness. The stories merge to form a cohesive whole, a book about two different, yet similar, men.
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