Julio Cortazar reader response

Julio Cortazar Reader Response

            The first instinct that appears to me personally when reading Julio Cortazar’s writing is, “what in the world just went on”. He is excellent at writing magical realism type stories because he makes a person think about what is truly going on and also appear as though they are a character of the story. I thoroughly enjoyed reading “Our Demeanor at Wakes”, “Continuity of Parks”, and “Axolotl” because they all kept my attention by being suspenseful for some and humorous for others.

            In “Our Demeanor at Wakes”, I felt a personal connection with this story, not only from working in a funeral home, but I’ve been to a fair share of funerals where a lot of people either stood around like careless zombies, or like in the story there were people just wreaking havoc like mad men. Overall this was my favorite story by Cortazar it was amusing yet sensual enough to get the point he was trying to make across that people should be essential not fake. I also really like “Continuity of Parks”, because I love suspense I read a lot of suspense novels and short stories, especially murder mysteries my favorite so far being “Kiss Cut” by: Karen Slaughter, which in an eerie way had me thinking if I was a true character or the reader as well.

            I liked “Axolotl”, but this reading was harder for me to focus on because it didn’t really hold my interest until the end. I really liked Cortazar’s choice in words while describing how he felt sorry for the Axolotls and how they were almost like one with the guy in the story. I feel the same way sometimes when I go to the zoo or just in my barn around the horses, except I can depict that I am human and not an animal.    

            I really enjoy Julio Cortazar and would strongly recommend his work to anyone who likes to be kept “on their toes”. Also I personally think he makes good points about “real life” through fictional stories and does a great job with confusing one with fantasy over reality.