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Adam, the father of all mankind, was created on October 28 at two in the afternoon. When these words first appeared in Lisbon in 1897 in the Encyclopedic Almanac, more than a few readers were scandalized. This irreverent, clever tale, among Eça de Queirós’s lesser known works, but no less representative for that, combines popular science with myth and a base naturalism with fantasy, all within a Biblical framework. The author puts his considerable wit to the task of creating a vision of Paradise as vivid as the real world, presenting prehistoric animals with real names but exaggerated appearances for effect, describing metaphorical landscapes with a moving prose, and introducing an Eve capable of interpreting everything Adam sees as mysterious and terrifying as logical and soothing. Fans of the classic Portuguese author as well as the uninitiated will find themselves drawn into the imaginative world presented in this wonderful story.
