You Dreamed of Empires

A Novel

De: Álvaro Enrigue, Natasha Wimmer - translator

Narrado por: Gabriel Porras

A NEW YORK TIMES TOP TEN BOOK OF 2024

A NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY TOP TEN BOOK OF THE YEAR

"Short, strange, spiky and sublime.” —Dwight Garner, New York Times

“Funny, ghastly, eye-opening, marvelous.” —Wall Street Journal

From the visionary author of Sudden Death, a hallucinatory, revelatory colonial revenge story.

One morning in 1519, conquistador Hernán Cortés enters the city of Tenochtitlan – today's Mexico City. Later that day, he will meet the emperor Moctezuma in a collision of two worlds, two empires, two languages, two possible futures.

Cortés is accompanied by his captains, his troops, his prized horses, and his two translators: Friar Aguilar, a taciturn friar, and Malinalli, an enslaved, strategic Nahua princess. After nearly bungling their entrance to the city, the Spaniards are greeted at a ceremonial welcome meal by the steely Aztec princess Atotoxtli, sister and wife of Moctezuma. As they await their meeting with the emperor – who is at a political and spiritual crossroads, and relies on hallucinogens to get by – Cortés and his entourage are ensconced in the labyrinthine palace. Soon, one of Cortés’s captains, Jazmín Caldera, overwhelmed by the grandeur of the place, begins to question the ease with which they were welcomed into the city, and wonders at the chances of getting out alive, much less conquering the empire. And what if... they don't?

You Dreamed of Empires brings Tenochtitlan to life at its height, and reimagines its destiny. The incomparably original Álvaro Enrigue sets afire the moment of conquest and turns it into a moment of revolution, a restitutive, fantastical counterattack, in a novel so electric and so unique that it feels like a dream.

Original point of view

This was a brutal book with a bit too much rape, cannibalism murder etc for me.,

Increíble

Enrigue speaks directly to the heart and soul and captivates the reader from the very start . The narrator’s style, pacing, and emphasis add a richness to the incredible text. A text that feels like a second skin and elicits a sense of pride for Mexico and for Mexicans everywhere. The blending of languages helps the reader to appreciate the encounters amongst the tremendous personalities of this story. I await the next book in this series and a movie adaptation!! 10/10

Dramatic imaginary

Dramatic imaginary from a perspective seldom heard. You can picture yourself walking along the empire.

Hard to understand the reader

I would rather read the book now. I feel like I missed a lot because I was just struggling to understand the reader.

Maybe better reading this than listening to it

I was really excited to listen to this book. Not only because of the many positive reviews, etc., but I live in a Spanish speaking country and thought it would be fun to listen to a latino read about the "Aztecs" etc. Well, boy was I WRONG. The reason is rather simple, this is a not a book to casually listen to as you work, walk, drive, etc. It requires listening carefully. You are literally INUNDATED with names, the likes of which are somewhat similar and have lovely complex sounds (the author claims the brain loves to make these necessary connections) but my brain was simply and truly overwhelmed. I was only able to keep up with a small handful of the characters (Monteczuma, La Malinche, Aguilar) but the rest of the characters (and don't get me started on the different factions/tribes) ended up feeling like important words placed in a blender and turned on high. It was just a bunch of blah....blah....blah...Don't get me wrong, it has parts that are beautifully written and described, but due in part to the heavy accent of the narrator and the complexity of the language/dialect, it is NOT my choice for an enjoyable listening experience.

Fascinating

The author did a wonderful job transporting the reader back to the early days of European encounter. What were the lives and habits of local people? How did they live? And what did they think of the odd Spaniards who arrived on their shores?
I was particularly moved by the author’s description of the strange beasts that arrived with Cortes, horses.

A dream with in a dream

What a trip. You are apart of someone’s dream wither you know it or not

The world and atmosphere.

Loved the pacing. Found the many perspectives at times challenging. Overall this was an incredible account of a fascinating period in history.

Aztec meets Castaneda …

A very different story of the “conquest” from an interesting viewpoint … sort of a surreal history in an updated mode of writing. Very enjoyable.

Delightfully strange

This novel sweeps you into a delirium. It is disorienting, filled with wonder, at times terrible and at times comical, and, material or not, insightful.

Narrator could not have been better suited to the work - I will look for him again.