
Sugar Orange is the first novel by renowned writer José Mauro de Vasconcelos. The book tells the story of six-year-old Zeze. The life of Zeze, a child from a poor family, is full of difficulties and hopes. The work also touches on topics such as family relationships, poverty, friendship, and the imagination.
The protagonist of the novel, Zeze, grows up as a child in a poor family. Conflicts in the family and the absence of a father often force Zeze to withdraw into a dream world. This fantasy world alleviates the difficulties he faces in real life. However, this dream world soon collapses, and Zeze’s life becomes more and more difficult.
The novel focuses on the impact of poverty and family conflicts on children. Zeze creates a fantasy world for himself due to the indifference and isolation of his family. This world eases the difficulties in his life. However, the fantasy world has its limits and Zeze must return to the real world to solve her problems in real life.
The book also touches on the theme of friendship and solidarity. Zeze comes to a major turning point in his life with the support of the people around him, such as Uncle Manuel. Uncle Manuel gives Zeza books and teaches him to read and write. Thus, Zeze develops his imagination even more and becomes successful in real life. The orange tree, Zeze’s friend, is an important symbol in her life. Cutting down the tree takes a toll on Zeze’s imagination, and Zeze fires her imagination by planting a new orange tree in its place.
The book also highlights the importance of children’s imagination and creativity. Through her dream world, Zeze learns to face the challenges she faces in real life and her outlook on life changes. In addition, the book contains important messages such as the fight against poverty and hope despite life’s difficulties. Let’s take a look at what interests you about Sugar Orange and the book together.
Candy Orange Theme
Sugar Orange tells the story of a child’s life. This book is perceived by many readers as a warm, touching and exciting story.
Zeze, the protagonist of the novel, is a six-year-old child from a poor family. Zeza has to deal with the hardships of her life and takes refuge in her dream world to make friends. Zeze befriends a man who lives in a garden full of orange trees in her fantasy world and meets him in a dream. This fantasy world eases Zeze’s difficulties in her real life and gives her a glimmer of hope.
The novel also deals with the internal dynamics of the Zeze family. While the family struggles with poverty and hardship, there are constant conflicts and conflicts between the elders. The work also often refers to the absence of a father in Zeze’s life. Zeze has a void from fatherlessness, which causes her to run away to the world of dreams.
Sugar Orange gives readers an insight into the world of children and also touches on concepts such as class differences, poverty, family relationships and loss.
The work reached millions of readers around the world and was published in many countries. The novel has been translated into many languages and won numerous awards around the world. It was also adapted for cinema by the Brazilian director Fernando Meirelles in 1982. Click here to view and purchase the book.
Synopsis for “Sugar Orange”

Zeze is a child from a poor family and her life is full of hardships. Because his father is unemployed, he can barely provide for his family. Zeze has created the world of her dreams in this difficult life she has lived. This world has orange trees and a person who lives among them. Zeze befriended this man. This fantasy world eases Zeze’s difficulties in her real life and gives her hope.
Zeze is also affected by the internal dynamics of her family. There are constant conflicts between the elders in the family. Zeze feels empty due to the absence of her father, and this often causes her to run away to the world of dreams. The Zeze family is also indifferent to him. This makes the little child talk to himself.
Zeze’s life becomes a bit more organized after her father finds a job. However, this orderly life soon collapses. He experiences great sadness when his favorite orange tree is cut down during construction work. After this event, Zeze clings even tighter to the world of his dreams and decides to plant a new orange tree in the place of his friend’s orange tree.
Zeze’s life becomes a little more colorful thanks to the support of the people around her. In particular, Uncle Manuel, a neighbor of his family, becomes an important figure in Zeze’s life. Uncle Manuel gives Zeza books and teaches him to read and write. The child develops himself even more after he learns to read. He starts adding new stories to his dream world.
At the end of the novel, Zeze’s life comes to an important turning point. His family is forced to make a difficult decision. This situation changes Zeze’s life. The little boy now looks at his life more optimistically.
Analysis of the book Sugar Orange

Candy Orange is a deep book with many topics and messages. It covers topics such as poverty, family relationships, friendship, imagination, survival, and hope.
Poverty is the main theme of the book and the biggest obstacle Zeze has faced in her life. Zeze and her family live in a poor neighborhood and struggle to meet even their basic needs. Zeze takes refuge in the dream world to escape his difficulties. He has many imaginary friends. However, his imagination is limited and he ends up having to deal with real life challenges. The book describes how poverty affects children.
Family relationships are another important theme of the book. Zeze and her family are at odds. Especially since there is no father. Because of this, Zeze develops close relationships with outsiders such as Uncle Manuel and the orange tree. The book also shows the impact of family conflicts on children.
Friendship is one of the strongest messages in the book. Zeze became friends with Uncle Manuel and the orange tree, and this friendship plays a big role in his life. This helps him cope with difficulties. The book highlights how strong and valuable the bonds of friendship are.
Imagination is the biggest source of strength in Zeze’s life. Through her dreams, Zeze learns to face the challenges she faces in real life. The book also explains the importance of imagination and how children’s creativity should be encouraged.
As a result, Candy Orange touches on topics such as poverty, family relationships, friendship, imagination, and hope, and conveys deep messages to readers through these topics.
Reviews of the book “Sugar Orange”
“I think you shouldn’t be prejudiced about the book and it has a story that will impress you no matter what age group you belong to.”
Message from: MrDouble37
“The most famous legendary book of Vasconcelos, even at the mention of which it becomes sad. This can cause regret for every day that was late and was not read. That’s why every child should grow up reading Candy Orange.
Message from: es_nepenthe
excerpts from the book

“Do you mind if I cry?”
“I can’t bear a second life.”
“Why do you have to tell little kids everything?”
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