The Poor (Os Pobres, 1906), by Portuguese author Raul Brandão, is a powerful tribute to the underclasses. Innovative thematically and stylistically, the novel consists of loosely connected vignettes on two narrative levels: the lives of prostitutes, where the inexorable need for love is transformed into a means for survival; and the life of Gebo, a seemingly slovenly man, with neither sentiment nor intelligence. Instead, as he searches tirelessly for work—and loves his daughter and wife with tenderness and constancy—he is revealed as a victim of the economic situation in Portugal. With prescience, Brandão emphasizes the interdependence between nature and humankind by intertwining descriptions of physical and human surroundings, while his depictions of desperation, sorrow and violence prefigure the works of contemporary Portuguese writers.

'How often, honestly, does the unveiling in translation of a 'forgotten genius' live up to the hype? Well here's one that does: Raduan Nassar' Times Literary Supplement 'I felt the powerful strength of my family overrunning me like a heavy rush of water' For Andre, a young man growing up on a farm in Brazil, life consists of 'the earth, the wheat, the bread, our table and our family'. He loves the land, fears his austere, pious father who preaches from the head of the table as if it is a pulpit, and loathes himself, as he starts to harbour shameful feelings for his sister Ana. Lyrical and sensual, told with biblical intensity, this classic Brazilian coming-of-age novel follows Andre's psychological and sexual awakening, as he must choose between body and soul, duty and freedom.