The Book of Disquiet

"Readers with a particular interest in modernism will find this work indispensable."--Publishers Weekly

"Pessoa's amazing personality is as beguiling and mysterious as his unique poetic output."--William Boyd

A self-deprecating reflection on the sheer distance between the loftiness of feelings and the humdrum reality of life, The Book of Disquiet is a classic of existentialist literature.

Fernando Pessoa, one of the founders of modernism, was born in Lisbon in 1888. Most of Pessoa's writing was not published during his lifetime: The Book of Disquiet was first published in Portugal in 1982.

The Book of Disquiet stands as Fernando Pessoa's most enigmatic work—a fragmented philosophical meditation composed of diary entries, reflections, and observations attributed to his semi-heteronym Bernardo Soares. Written across decades but published posthumously, this modernist masterpiece explores themes of alienation, introspection, and the human condition through lyrical prose that blurs the boundaries between autobiography and fiction. Pessoa's exploration of consciousness and identity remains profoundly relevant to contemporary readers seeking literary depth and intellectual challenge—an essential text for those interested in Portuguese literature, modernism, and the complexities of self-examination.