EQUADOR

One of the best-selling novels in contemporary Portuguese literature, Equator paints a masterful portrait of the final years of the Portuguese monarchy in the early 20th century. The protagonist, Luís Bernardo, departs from Lisbon for the island of São Tomé and Príncipe, where he assumes the post of governor—only to encounter a reality far more complex than he could have imagined.
At the dawn of the 20th century, Luís Bernardo Valença, a well-known Portuguese intellectual, is invited by King Dom Carlos to carry out a bold and complicated mission—one that will abruptly change the course of his life. A single man nearing forty, Luís enjoys the privileges of life in a major city like Lisbon. Accepting the king’s invitation means leaving it all behind for a new life—one in which he hopes to put his political ideals into practice: to contribute to the effective abolition of slavery in Africa by serving as governor of São Tomé and Príncipe.
More than a century after slavery was officially abolished in Portugal, doubts still linger about whether the laborers are truly employed and treated with dignity. The line between wage labor and slavery remains murky. Especially in remote colonies scattered across Africa, a man with a signed work contract may still receive lashings from someone he’s unsure whether to call “sir” or “master.”
Equator, the debut novel by Miguel Sousa Tavares, published in 2003, explores precisely this political complexity and the challenge of translating theory and ideals into practical reality. More than that, it delves into the depths of human passion and how it intertwines with power dynamics. Luís Bernardo accepts the king’s mission and is thrust into a world completely foreign to him. He quickly realizes that his intellect alone won’t be enough to navigate what awaits him on the island of São Tomé and Príncipe—a place visited by just two ships a month, where the population has long lived without the basic human rights already established in Europe.
As readers follow Luís Bernardo’s journey, they too are introduced to the landscape and people of the island through the author’s vivid and detailed descriptions. Alongside the protagonist, we come to understand the ambiguity of his situation. And politics isn’t the only force at play in this complex setting—when Luís is overtaken by a forbidden and all-consuming love, everything becomes even more tangled and compelling.