Blindness isn't very much like any other book I've read. It does have a 3rd person omniscient narrator, and it has a very clear and descriptive setting. However, unlike other books I've read, José Saramago doesn't give a name to a single character. Along with this affect, none of the dialog is split into a clear organization. It takes some more energy to think about whether it's a character's inner dialog, who is saying it, and who is around to hear it. This makes the book very interesting right off the bat.
The first part of the plot depicts a blindness epidemic that strikes a city, and how it bounces from person to person to anyone in contact with any of those people, very quickly. Time moves very quickly in the beginning. Despite the horror that is described from the sudden white engulfing blindness, I love reading this book. The characters are well-described to make up for a lack of a name, and although they have no name they each have a a distinguishing title.
What I don't like about this book so far, is how paranoid it has made me. It puts me in another place from simply reading and analyzing. Throughout my day I catch myself thinking, "what if I go blind right now?" and I start to freak out a little bit. I get that that is pretty irrational, but the blindness in the book has no explanation and it breaks down a government in a matter of weeks.
So far so good though, I'm not physically blind and I really like this book.
