"The Private Lives of Trees" by Alejandro Zambra is a captivating exploration into the depths of human relationships and the enigmatic nature of existence. Zambra's prose is both meandering and meticulously crafted, weaving a tapestry of emotions and ideas that leave an indelible mark on the reader's psyche. Profoundly metaphorical and symbolical, it leaves much unsaid, creating a mystifying yet is also clear.

Describing this novella is a challenge for me; in my view, it delves into themes of fatherhood, relationships, and our influence on people in our lives. Zambra's exploration of writers and their emotions, as seen in "Bonsai" and this book, intrigued me, resonating with similar experiences I've encountered in Tamil literature. Perhaps this sentiment is universal?

The brevity of Zambra's storytelling, coupled with its expansive nature, invites readers into the orchestration of the novel itself. It stretches far, incorporating metatextual qualities that position the protagonist as a secondary character, giving prominence to those around him. This doubleness is distinctive, allowing us to perceive the narrative both as a product of the protagonist's frantic imaginings and as a glimpse into the future, revealing what lies ahead for them and those they influence. The sentences themselves are densely packed with meaning, each offering a glimpse into the complexity of the narrative.

While I personally liked "Bonsai," I find myself increasingly appreciating this book when i think about it. It is a gentle novel, with so much love it demands empathy. P.S. Alejandro Zambra is a brilliant writer.

3.75/5

Thank you Netgalley/Fitzcarraldo Editions for this book in lieu of an honest review

This is a tender novella about fatherhood. The story unfolds over the course of one night. Julián wife Veronica doesn’t return, so he puts his step daughter Daniela as usual, telling her stories called ‘The Private Lives of Trees’. As the night stretches on, Veronica doesn’t return, and Julián retraces his memory about his childhood, his ex, his relationship with Veronica. Then comes a decisive moment when he realises that Veronica will never return. He makes a conscious effort to move forward, take care of Daniela, fix the quotidian details of life firmly in place, and become a pillar of stability that is the polar opposite of her ‘real’ father.

I appreciate the connection between Julián and Daniela, but I am not sure if I understood what the story is trying to say. Like Daniela, the reader is left in the dark about why Veronica disappeared and whether she left or died. I am not sure what’s the meaning of part II (Winter), about a grown-up Daniela visiting her biological father Fernando and navigating around the gap between them, and about her finally reading Julián’s novel but fails to connect the book to her childhood memories. I also don’t understand the significance of tree, bonsais, the section titles ‘Greenhouse’ and ‘Winter’, and Julián’s writing projects.

All in all, it was a pleasant and propulsive read, but it ultimately feels inconclusive. I’d be happy if someone could share their interpretation with me!

3.25

A disjointed, often dreamy story told from a man to his stepdaughter that takes a turn into remembrance and forgetting. The most poignant points I took away from this were the ideas that people can go their whole life not knowing about the impact and legacy they leave behind. It's definitely one to read in a single sitting to get that sense of increasing anxiety as Jumoan waits for his wife to return, while trying to distract his stepdaughter with a sweet story.

Short and succinct.

The Private Lives of Trees tells the story of a single night: a young professor of literature named Julián is reading to his step-daughter Daniela and nervously waiting for his wife Verónica to return from her art class. Each night, Julián has been improvising a story about trees to tell Daniela before she goes to sleep, and each Sunday he works on a novel about a man tending to his bonsai, but something about this night is different. As Julián becomes increasing concerned that Verónica won't return, he reflects on their life together in minute detail, and imagines what Daniela—at twenty, at twenty-five, at thirty years old, without a mother—will think of his novel.Perhaps even more daring and dizzying than Zambra's magical Bonsai, The Private Lives of Trees demands to be read in a single sitting, and it casts a spell that will bring you back to it again and again.

I enjoyed this book's predecessor, Bonsai, for the way it told a story within a story, and navigated a truly singular narrative style that was at turns confusing and crystal clear.

I will confess, however, that this book, a meta-commentary of Bonsai, was perhaps one extra layer too far for me, and I was occasionally a little confused by it. There were still many moments of interest, but I could not always connect the dots back to where it was going.

I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

A short novel, in translation, by acclaimed Chilean writer Alejandro Zambra.
This is my first time reading this author's work and now I will be keen to discover more by him in the future.
A gently unfolding tale which takes place over a single night - yet at the same time spans decades.
I think this is beautifully, skilfully done and consider the whole short work to actually be about the art of story-telling itself. During the scant few pages and limited timescale of setting, we actually learn vast amounts about the lives of the key characters in 'The Private Life of Trees' and also about the possibilities of writing and telling stories.
The plot meanders and never really comes to a satisfactorily conclusion. Are the future snippets we read, showing us glimpses of the life the young girl will go on to have? Or are they merely fictional possibilities, imagined by the increasingly worried and anxious Julian, her step-father, as he waits and waits for the return of Veronica their missing (or just extremely late) wife and mother.
During the hours we wait alongside them, some of the time is taken learning about the book Julian has been writing about Bonsai (a real book), the thought processes involved in creating a story and his uncertainty as to whether this is a successful piece of writing or not. Julian also tells stories to his step-daughter about 'The Private Life of Trees', giving the trees characters and relationships with each other.
We could say nothing much happens, or we could say whole lives are lived. Either way, Zambra's prose is both efficient and lovely. This is a gorgeous little novel, well translated and quite lyrical in pace and language. I loved it. I wanted it to be longer, so I was disappointed by it's brevity. Yet this is the genius of this piece, because we have been furnished with so many potential ways in which these stories could continue and unfold. We have been given examples of how to go about imagining and writing - thus the author gives us his work PLUS the possibility for extending everything he tells us further, as an act of our own imaginations.
Highly recommended. Alejandro Zambra's writing is rightly highly thought of - I need to read more.
Fitzcarraldo have brought us another beauty here. Thanks to the publishers and Netgalley for giving me access to a digital ARC so I could provide an honest review.

Verónica is late, and Julián is increasingly convinced she won't ever come home. To pass the time, he improvises a story about trees to coax his stepdaughter, Daniela, to sleep. But as the night stretches on before him, and the hours pass with no sign of Verónica, Julián finds himself caught up in the slipstream of the story of his life – of their lives together.

At just over 50 pages long, the short story is packed full of emotion and captures the perfect range of emotions that go through your head when waiting for someone to come home who is late.

This is a story with no major drama, fireworks or thriller aspects, but an episode in a moment of life that is quiet and blossoms into something that leaves you feeling fulfilled.

The E-Book could be improved and more user-friendly, such as links to the chapters, no significant gaps between words some text written has been typed in red and a cover for the book would be better. It is very document-like instead of a book. A star has been deducted because of this.

'Veronica isn't back yet from her drawing class. When she returns, the novel will end.'

Precise, exact, beautiful and utterly captivating, this is a book-lover's book if ever there was one. Zambra writes with such skill that even in a very short book you feel like you know and understand the characters, and you have enough space to understand implicitly what is left unsaid. Subtle and wonderful. 4.5 stars.

(With thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC of this title.)

I first read this book probably over a decade ago, not long after I first read Bonsai. At the time, Bonsai was one of the most revelatory books I had read, so minimalist and concise yet deeply rewarding. The Private Lives of Trees didn’t quite match the reading experience.

Going back to this short novel I was surprised at just how great it is. In the span of an evening while waiting for his wife to return, Julian ruminates on what has led to this point in his life and the future of his step daughter Daniela. The real strength of this story lies in Zambra’s use of third person narration, where he masterfully blurs the line between Julian’s imagination and Daniels’s actual future.

I enjoyed having the chance to revisit and reevaluate this novel and appreciate once again the genius of Alejandro Zambra.

The Private Lives of Trees tells the story of Julio, a writer and literature professor who lives with his wife and her daugther, Daniela. One night, as he's waiting for his wife, Veronica, to come home, he is telling stories of trees to help Daniela fall asleep. That night, he waits and waits, and Veronica doesn't seem to be coming back. As he's waiting, he thinks back to his past relationship, his childhood, how he met Veronica but he also imagines the future, will Veronica come back, if she doesn't, what will happen to Daniela? He pictures Daniela's future at twenty, twenty-five, thirty and he wonders if she will read his book and what role he will be playing in her life.

This is a short novel that completely drags you in. It is introspective, reflective, and despite being short, it will stay with you for a while. Books like these are the ones that make you fall in love with words and their power. They show that even a book that contains 100 pages or less can hit you hard. Zambra reminded me once again why I fell in love with reading and why I decided to make selling books my job. It's a little gemstone hidden amongst the flashy covers on the shelves of a bookstore that you'll regret not picking up!

This is a short and compelling novella.

It starts with Julián telling his stepdaughter a bedtime story while waiting for his wife Veronica to return from her drawing classes. The length of the novella is the waiting period; from the beginning, we know that this story will end when Veronica returns home or when he stops waiting for her. In the meantime, we accompany Julián in his waiting. During the night, he revisits his past, childhood, relationship with his ex, Karla, and his story of being a writer and a professor. He also recounts how he met Veronica and her life story, but only the part relevant to his life and their relationship. Finally, he imagines the future, for him if Veronica doesn't return, and if she does, and for his stepdaughter.

While short, this novella is very moving because we get to glimpse into the main character's inner world and, more importantly, his seemingly uncensored thoughts. However, you can tell that every word and sentence in this book is important. It is one of those books where the author probably wrote 500 pages for the first draft and then deleted and edited it to roughly 100. Nothing felt out of place.

I haven't ever considered the process of waiting as one of the main themes of the book, but here it seems very fitting and is executed flawlessly. It felt very meditative in the sense that the main character had to pause and live in this moment in time, rethinking what has led him here and what may lie ahead. But everything felt very present.

I would recommend this book to people who like short fiction about families and relationships that focuses on the main character's inner life and thoughts.

A fantastic short fiction that offers itself up to re-reading. There are many different lenses the reader through which the reader can view this novel, and it would be interesting to go back through the text regularly to do so. Heartily recommend.

“The Private Lives of Trees” – Alejandro Zambra (translated from Spanish by Megan McDowell)

Published on the 7th February, thanks to @netgalley and @fitzcarraldoeditions for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Spanning just one Chilean evening, “The Private Lives of Trees” recounts the inner thoughts and anxieties of Julian, a literary professor and writer waiting for the return of his wife Veronica. To pass the time, Julian improvises stories to his step-daughter Daniela, trying not to nervously think about the whereabouts of his wife, trying to send the young girl to sleep so as to not share his worries.

As the novella progresses, Zambra offers us glimpses back into Julian’s past life, reflections on its current state, and projections into the future. Julian is insecure in his position as the father figure to Daniela, as he struggled to look after a bonsai tree not long ago (which may be an allusion to both the “book within a book” of this work, as well as one of Zambra’s earlier works that I haven’t read), yet his strong desire for companionship and company has led him to this situation with all its joys and concerns. He has found a loving family, one where he can plan a future for this new child in his life, but is he good enough to give her everything she needs? Can one be private as a tree in a world as interconnected as ours? Are trees even truly private beings?

We also see references to writing itself, as well as Julian’s previous relationship and its abrupt ending (pretty spectacularly ended, by anyone’s standards), and just the creeping wait for Veronica’s return, or if she ever will. Part of me wondered if this was referring to Chile’s not-too-distant past, how some people may never have come home, disappeared from the world for incorrect views. The book doesn’t make any overly political statements, but Zambra is definitely one of the generation of writers who have covered this aspect of modern Chile, so I couldn’t help but notice it.

I really enjoyed this little gem of a book. The physical time reading it will be short for most, but the ruminations afterwards will linger much longer. Well worth investigating.

This is a short novella by Chilean writer, Alejandro Zambro, translated by Megan McDowell, that spans an evening, featuring Julian, a professor of literature and writer, giving us a glimpse into his anxieties and fears. He awaits the return of his wife, Veronica, from art class, afraid she may never come back, reading to his step-daughter Daniela of the private lives of trees as his inner turmoil is revealed. He reflects on his past history, his previous relationship with Karla and the nature of love. An insecure Julian wonders about the precarious nature of family and relationships, of how people can come and go, leaving barely a mark, in direct contrast to the longevity and solidity of trees, apprehensively thinking of what a grown up Daniela might be like in the future and her opinion of his stories.

I had a certain ambiguity about how I felt about this novella that seemed to be over before I even knew it, but came to enjoy and appreciate it more as time passed and I found myself returning to again and again in my thoughts. It is not a read for everyone, but I think there will be many readers who will love it. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

The Private Lives of Trees is a lovely, concise novella depicting Julien's distress as he waits for his wife, who is late arriving home from a class, and his efforts to protect his step-daughter from worry by reading her bedtime stories about trees to help her sleep.

Julien visits memories of his childhood and family, and Zambra wastes no words yet somehow paints such detailed pictures of these many different characters, and evokes a feeling of nostalgia. He moves on in his train of thoughts as he waits, growing increasingly concerned, and he envisions his step-daughters future. In this he talks little of himself and a lot of her real father, suggesting he fears not just the loss of his wife if she does not return, but also losing his stepdaughter and the wonderful father-daughter relationship that they have.

I really enjoyed this book, a short but very sweet read. It is the kind of story I could read again and again and is small enough to enjoy in one sitting. Zambra has an incredibly gentle, soothing writing style that is very relaxing, and his exploration of love and relationships had me feeling philosophical.

I'd highly recommend trying this if you like translated fiction, it was my first dive into the world of Chilean literature and it definitely is a great first impression!

As soon as I finished this I went straight out and ordered Bonsai -- and thanks to Fitzcarraldo for being such a great publisher.

(I will add a few more thoughts before publishing date.)

A short and sweet novella spanning over the course of one night. A man, Julian, waits for his wife, Veronica to return from her art class but she is late.

What follows is Julian reminiscing about the past, how he met his wife and his stepdaughter, he is also overcome with anxiety induced by his wife’s lateness. Perhaps she’s injured? Dead? Or having an affair?

He also contemplates the future of his stepdaughter, whom he tells the story of The Private Lives of Trees to. He imagines her with a man named Ernesto, reading his novel that he has been spending his evenings writing.

There’s a lot of secret moments and poetic prose, anxiety and wondering whether Veronica will return even though the reader has been told at the beginning that the story will end once she comes back. But more than that, it is also about family and family structures and a step fathers love for his step daughter.

Zambra is in many ways a master of his craft, genre-defying anf multidisciplined, his works so far have redefined the form and presentation of the novel. Although this book is certainly more conventional than his previous endeavours, it retains his singular vision and talent with words.

Julian tells improvised bedtime stories about the trees to little Daniela. Her mother, Veronica, is running late from her art class. I love the atmosphere in this novella and the tension in the air because of the waiting for Veronica.

I rarely reread books. But from time to time, there is one that I know, right after the reading, I have to read it again. And this is one of those.

The Private Life of Trees is my first book by Alejandro Zambra, and I'm curious about his other works.

Thanks to Fitzcarraldo Editions for the ARC and this opportunity! This is a voluntary review and all opinions are my own.

Such a gentle novel, one that I happily devoured in a single evening. This book is about relationships, those people that touch our lives and have an impact - large or small. It is also about family - what sort of father will Julian be to Daniela - hopefully a better one than her real father. We all wait for Veronica because as Julian says - the book continues until she comes home. This is one of those books that we all need sometimes, a book to make us pause and breathe.