A box of Ltin manuscripts comes to light in an Argentine flea market. An apocyphral invention by some 17th or 18th century scolar, or a transcrpit of what it appears to be - a hitherto unheard of letter to St Augustine to a woman he renounced for chastity? VITA BREVIS is both an entrancing human document and a fascinating insight into the life and philosophy of St.Augustine. Gaarder'sinterpretation of Floria's letter is as playful, inventive and questioning as Sophie's World.
Vita Brevis: Floria Aemilia's Letter to Aurel Augustine
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About the Author
Jostein Gaarder is the author of SOPHIE'S WORLD, a huge bestseller in over 40 countries. He was born in Oslo in 1952 and lives there now with his wife and two sons.
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First Sentence
WHEN I VISITED the book fair in Buenos Aires in the spring of 1995 I was urged to set aside a morning for the renowned flea market in San Telmo. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
WHEN I VISITED the book fair in Buenos Aires in the spring of 1995 I was urged to set aside a morning for the renowned flea market in San Telmo. Read the first page
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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
I have never read a book by Jostein Gaarder before, although am well aware of "Sophie's World" and the "Christmas Mystery", the stories of which never really made me want to read his books. So it doesn't surprise that I came across "Vita Brevis" by complete accident. I started reading the epilogue and was hooked immediately and did not put the book down before I finished reading it. Anybody with an interest in ancient culture and history, Latin or Greek languages or even Christian religion, should read this book as it really brings alive the history of ancient Rome and Catharge. But the story of Floria and Augustine works on a very human level, too. The book is in effect a letter, composed by Floria, to her former partner who left her to save his own soul. He is now known as Saint Augustine. Floria composed her letter after reading Augustine's "Confessions" and by reminding him of their life together she grants us, the people of today, an insight into life ~1500 years ago. This alone makes the book worth reading. But what is even more surprising is how little human interactions and emotions have changed since then and how applicable to modern life the things are Floria speaks about in her letter. Floria, without a doubt, was a very well educated and intelligent woman but her foresight in respect to the treatment of women by the Catholic Church is quite simply extraordinary.
All in all, a very tragic story that will give you goosebumps that will touch you on a very personal level and that will give you heaps to think about.
All in all, a very tragic story that will give you goosebumps that will touch you on a very personal level and that will give you heaps to think about.
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
I read this whole book in one night when I was stranded in Zurich airport and it just touched me in a way no other book by this author has before. This book will really set you thinking - I just can't say anymore about it - just read it for yourself...
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By P. M. Fernandez
VINE™ VOICE
Format:Hardcover
This is one of Gaarder's most remarkable books. It isn't long - it only takes a couple of hours to read - but the subject matter is probably the most mature and thought-provoking of his books, with the possible exception of "Through a Glass Darkly".
The backstory is that the author has discovered the manuscript of a letter, written from Floria Aemelia to Augustine, the Christian philosopher, and author of Confessions. Floria, it turns out, was the lover who bore Augustine a son, and who was abandoned by him as he immersed himself in his religious beliefs. The letter weaves together the story of their relationship, from their first to their last meeting, and also provides a response to Augustine's approach to human love. Floria has learnt much in the years they have been apart, and she frames her letter as an echo of the Confessions, in addition to filling it with allusions to other classical literature and the Scriptures that Augustine himself loves.
Floria argues with Augustine that for him to deny their love was to reject something good that God has made. She also highlights the way in which Augustine had been unable to break away from his relationship with his mother - and that in actual fact his response to Floria has as much to do with this distorting effect as his religious convictions.
A remarkable book. Read it, then find somebody to talk about it with into the small hours ... if you can.
The backstory is that the author has discovered the manuscript of a letter, written from Floria Aemelia to Augustine, the Christian philosopher, and author of Confessions. Floria, it turns out, was the lover who bore Augustine a son, and who was abandoned by him as he immersed himself in his religious beliefs. The letter weaves together the story of their relationship, from their first to their last meeting, and also provides a response to Augustine's approach to human love. Floria has learnt much in the years they have been apart, and she frames her letter as an echo of the Confessions, in addition to filling it with allusions to other classical literature and the Scriptures that Augustine himself loves.
Floria argues with Augustine that for him to deny their love was to reject something good that God has made. She also highlights the way in which Augustine had been unable to break away from his relationship with his mother - and that in actual fact his response to Floria has as much to do with this distorting effect as his religious convictions.
A remarkable book. Read it, then find somebody to talk about it with into the small hours ... if you can.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Hardcover
I was a little cautious at first as it didn't seem to be like other Jostein Gaarder novels that I have read. However it is a thouroughly captivating and extremely interesting book that is well worth reading whether you beieve the tale to be true or not!
By Ardnaxela
Format:Kindle Edition
...but then you come to see what a great book this is. I haven't tried the Kindle version of the book, so I can make no judgement on the electronic version, but it is a very good book.
The way this book is written, you instantly wonder if these are really genuine transcripts. You are also quickly captivated by Gaarder's great writing. The insight he has into the female way of expressing thoughts and emotions is incredible and you do forget that the author is a man.
This is a book very different from anything I have ever read and it only gets better as you read it again. I was reading it for a school project on Gaarder and had to read the book several times for analysis purposes and each time I liked it more and discovered new information.
Gaarder is truly a great writer and this book is definitely worth the money.
The way this book is written, you instantly wonder if these are really genuine transcripts. You are also quickly captivated by Gaarder's great writing. The insight he has into the female way of expressing thoughts and emotions is incredible and you do forget that the author is a man.
This is a book very different from anything I have ever read and it only gets better as you read it again. I was reading it for a school project on Gaarder and had to read the book several times for analysis purposes and each time I liked it more and discovered new information.
Gaarder is truly a great writer and this book is definitely worth the money.
2 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Firstly, I want to say that I have read the majority of Jostein Gaarder's novels, and that I have enjoyed nearly all of them. I put reading this book off for a while, and don't know why, but now that I have read it, I almost wish I hadn't.
The book begins, as another reviewer describes, by Gaarder explaining how he came to own a transcript of a letter, supposedly written by St. Augustine's discarded concubine. This beginning section is included to make the following 'stroy' believeable, howvever, as someone else remarked, just how well it does that is open to debate. While people do make lucky discoveries all the time, if there had really been such a transcript discovered, I would have imagined that the world would have been all over it by now. Such a discovery would be quite a revelation, to say the least.
The novel then progresses by simply providing the reader with an opportunity to read the transcript that Gaarder supposedly found. Before I go on, I should say that I cannot comment upon Latin and translations from it - I have no knowledge in that area, but I do understand that many things can be lost within translation from any language. I also have never read the Confessions of St. Augustine, so I cannot really comment on how this piece of work stands against that as a piece of potential history.
What I want to comment on is how, just reading this work by Gaarder, I was affected.
The tone of this work is quite intense. I interpretted it as Floria having a rant at St. Augustine, after having read his Confessions, and feeling rejected yet again by him. She makes constant reference to him sacrificng their relationship together because of his vow of abstinence, and how she is feeling by being described as some sort of sin, on his part.... Read more ›
The book begins, as another reviewer describes, by Gaarder explaining how he came to own a transcript of a letter, supposedly written by St. Augustine's discarded concubine. This beginning section is included to make the following 'stroy' believeable, howvever, as someone else remarked, just how well it does that is open to debate. While people do make lucky discoveries all the time, if there had really been such a transcript discovered, I would have imagined that the world would have been all over it by now. Such a discovery would be quite a revelation, to say the least.
The novel then progresses by simply providing the reader with an opportunity to read the transcript that Gaarder supposedly found. Before I go on, I should say that I cannot comment upon Latin and translations from it - I have no knowledge in that area, but I do understand that many things can be lost within translation from any language. I also have never read the Confessions of St. Augustine, so I cannot really comment on how this piece of work stands against that as a piece of potential history.
What I want to comment on is how, just reading this work by Gaarder, I was affected.
The tone of this work is quite intense. I interpretted it as Floria having a rant at St. Augustine, after having read his Confessions, and feeling rejected yet again by him. She makes constant reference to him sacrificng their relationship together because of his vow of abstinence, and how she is feeling by being described as some sort of sin, on his part.... Read more ›
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