Cleopatra Dismounts

October 20, 2003
Mexican writer Boullosa (Leaving Tabasco,
etc.) lavishly reimagines the life of the legendary Cleopatra of Egypt in this daring intermingling of fantasy and history told in various voices. The book begins with the words of an assistant to Diomedes, Cleopatra's scribe and informer, who attempts to bring order to the fragments the dying scribe has preserved of Cleopatra's words. Cleopatra's histrionic yet formal recounting of her love affair with Mark Antony as she prepares to commit suicide next to his dead body is followed by a disclaimer from Diomedes, who discounts the previous sections as manipulated by the Romans who wished to disgrace Cleopatra's memory. He quixotically vows to recapture the speech of the true Cleopatra, and thus begins a convoluted, fantastic first-person account of Cleopatra's escape as a girl from her father's residence in Rome, her adventures with Cilician pirates, her supernatural abduction by a magical bull and her encounter with the Amazons as she attempts to recover her embattled country. The queen's erotically chaotic education under the Amazons, as well as the abandon of her numerous sexual liaisons, stand in contrast to her commitment to order and clever administration of her empire, and we are left, like Diomedes, with a conflicted picture of the true Cleopatra. Unfortunately, that picture is made almost incomprehensible by an overabundance of minor historical and mythological figures and an abrupt, disconnected, hallucinatory narrative; the translation by Hargreaves feels haranguing and flat rather than powerful. Though Boullosa makes a bold attempt to reflect on the power of women and the sacrifices of erotic love, her effort falls short, leaving an impression of the "disharmony, patternless and fragmented, heading in all directions" that Cleopatra despised, rather than the Egyptian queen's "energy, complexity, and violence."

November 1, 2003
In this enchanting work, Mexican author Boullosa (They're Cows, We're Pigs) retells Cleopatra's story three times over. In Part 1, the queen clings to the lifeless (and disemboweled) body of her beloved Marc Antony, considering how her love brought out her nobler qualities while greatly enhancing her reputation, riches, and political power. Part 2 shows her rising above the palace intrigue and testing her mettle by joining a band of pirates. In Part 3, a magical bull transports the fearless queen across the Mediterranean Sea to the home of the Amazons. Although told in the first person, these tales come from the pen of Cleopatra's scribe, whose presence adds more intrigue as his credibility is questioned again and again. What results is a remarkable homage to a remarkable woman who, in the words of Boullosa, chooses to be "unfaithful to her nature." Rich, inventive, evocative, erotic, and even bawdy in places, Boullosa's writing is not for the fainthearted, but readers who try it will be rewarded. Highly recommended for medium and large academic and public libraries.-Lisa Nussbaum, Dauphin Cty. Lib. Syst., Harrisburg, PA

Copyright 2003 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 15, 2003
Mexican author Boullosa plays with the life and myth of Cleopatra in her third novel to be published in the U.S., following "Leaving Tabasco "(2001)" "and "They're Cows, We're Pigs" (1997). Drawing on the writings of several ancient authors, including Sophocles, Cicero, and Virgil, Boullosa presents a Cleopatra different from the traditional, historical portrait, which came to us via the Romans, who had much reason to dislike her. Boullosa offers three possibilities, leaving us to decide which defines her best. Was she the lover of Marc Antony, too distraught to remain alive after his death? Or the young girl who disguised herself and went to live with a band of pirates in order to escape from her royal duties? Or a woman who learned the art of love and war from Hippolyta, the queen of the Amazons, and her tribe of women warriors? Those wanting a straightforward fictional biography of Cleopatra should look to Margaret George's "Memoirs of Cleopatra" (1997), but readers open to an imaginative, sensual, and poetic peek into the life of this fascinating woman will enjoy Boullosa's visions. (Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2003, American Library Association.)