Dona Flor y sus dos maridos Book

Jorge Amado happens to be one of my favourite authors, but I do have a confession to make, I have such a deep affection for Latin American authors, Spanish as well as Portuguese. Amado is humorous in a ribald sort of way but what is most important about him, is that he is completely non judgemental.

I read "Dona Flor e seus dois Maridos" as an English translation and found it beautiful. The original Portuguese, however, is pretty much different, it deals with many more aspects of Brazilian Culture that the English translation does not, but both are very good.

Coming back to the essence of the book, we all have two sides to our selves, and Dona Flor is no exception.
As a young girl she marries Vadinho, the love of her life. Vadinho proves to be a wastrel, a bom vivão, who loves to gamble, whores around. For him the most important event is Carnaval, and then, much as Vadinho would have desired, he just drops down dead in the midst of the Carnaval festivities.
Dona Flor is relieved, Dona Rozilda ecstatic - although everyone hated Dona Rozilda, Dona Flor's mother, I loved her venomous tongue; her 'Brazilian Insults' had me in splits.
Slowly and steadely, Dona Flor builds her business; she cooks and gives cooking lessons.
Amado just loves Bahia, its food and most important the azeite-de-dendê.
Time moves on, Dona Flor is very secure financially, but something is missing, her students notice that she is not as 'alegre' as she used to be earlier.
What could be missing in her life, money? That she has.
Respect? No chance everyone respects the pretty young widow.
Just when she cannot bear this inner turmoil any longer she realises that the missing ingredient in her life is….Sex.
Oh! how she misses her sexual dalliances with Vadinho. She now realises that those happy, fulfilling romps in bed are a thing of the past. Then her despair turns to joy, when the very staid and correct Teodoro proposes marriage to her. It is a meeting of minds and souls. Teodoro is a man with his own business, a cultured gentleman who loves classical music, has his own quartet.
Could Dona Flor ask for more? Of course not, Teodoro is every woman's dream; strong, reliable, dependable, any woman could entrust her future and her life in Teodoro's capable hands, a far cry from Vadinho. Or is he?
Teodoro is a man of extremely regular habits; everything has its time and place and that includes sex. How can you have sex at prescribed, regular times sighs Dona Flor. Sex so regular and predictable that Dona Flor wants to scream and tear her hair in despair.
Vadinho, O meu Vadinho, how she yearns for the much maligned Vadinho.
We feel the turmoil in Dona Flor's life. Here is Teodoro who loves her, treats her with respect, never deprives her of her hard earned money on the other hand we have Vadinho who only has his sexual expertise.
How Dona Flor pines for Vadinho, her body cries out to him and in that yearning Goddess Yemanja comes to her aid. Yemanja with her magical powers 'brings back Vadinho" and well…..you can only imagine how happy Dona Flor is, the romps are back and they are just as good as before Vadinho died.
The book has many facets to it; the central one of course being Dona Flor's physical needs, her sexual cravings. Ironically both Vadinho and Teodoro save her from depravity. We could take a look at our darker inner selves, if of course we would be willing to admit to having one!

Jorge Amado, also shows us what it is to be a gambler, the hunger, the despair, the win are interwoven in this book, incidentally it is not pleasant to win all of the time, it takes away the edge of the game.
Amazing how this book leads us into so very many unexplored avenues, forcing us to think without prejudice.
Vadinho sums the book when he as a ghost says,
'Tambem do meu amor precisas para ser feliz, desse amor de impurezas, errado e torto, devasso ardente, que faz sofrer'