Books To Help You Learn Portuguese

 

Os Maias

José Maria de Eça de Queiroz’s Os Maias is a classic Portuguese novel. The story follows a young aristocrat living through the decline of monarchy in late 19th-century Portugal, told through the perspective of three generations of his family. It’s not the cheeriest of books, but it is an important one. This is likely best for intermediate to advanced learners.




O Alquimista

Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist is pretty well-known and well-loved in its various international translations, which makes O Alquimista an enticing read for Portuguese students. This Brazilian bestseller tells the tale of a shepherd who journeys to the Egyptian pyramids in search of a lost treasure.



Ensaio Sobre a Cegueira

José Saramago is one of Portugal’s most celebrated writers (and the recipient of the 1998 Nobel Prize in Literature), and Ensaio Sobre a Cegueira is one of his most famous novels. The book tells the story of a city afflicted by a blindness epidemic, focusing mainly on a core group of characters who are among the first to get sick. As the city around them unravels in a wave of panic, the main characters stick together in an attempt to survive. Saramago is known for his long sentences that lack punctuation, so this is probably better for more advanced learners.