Loud footsteps in a vast and otherwise silent corridor; the cloying perfume of lilacs; an ice-cold drink at the end of a hot, dry day. In Winter we bundle-up, huddle inside and create a barrier between ourselves and the elements. Summer, though, is a different story. We open ourselves up to the full sensuality of the natural world – we wear less clothing, bask in the sun … Continue reading 3 Novellas for Summer
2. I never know what to expect when I crack open a new César Aira book. It’s not always love at first sight. Varamo grew on me over time. The Miracle Cures of Dr. Aira initially excited me, but now ranks as least favorite. A reader on Trevor’s (of The Mookse & the Gripes) forums made the comment that in Spanish Aira tends to be … Continue reading Shantytown by Cesar Aira (Chris Andrews, translator)
1. Juan Pablo Villalobos’ novella Quesadillas* is set in the Mexican backwater of Lado De Moreno, in a house on a hill called Cerro de la Chingada (which roughly translates into “the armpit”) and tells the adventures of a boy named Orestes. “Oreo” for short. This follow-up to last years’ Down the Rabbit Hole is about many things: adolescent angst, class economics and the impact … Continue reading Quesadillas by Juan Pablo Villalobos (translated from Spanish by Rosalind Harvey & with an introduction by Neel Mukherjee)
All Dogs Are Blue is a beautifully nuanced portrayal of mental illness. Rodrigo de Souza Leão has given us a story set in a Brazilian mental institution which isn’t a caricature of lunacy. The author does not fall into the familiar stereotypes. He does not confine his narrator within a prison of horrors. Nor does Souza Leão romanticize the disease, assigning it the attributes of genius. … Continue reading All Dogs Are Blue by Rodrigo de Souza Leão, translated from the Portuguese by Zoë Perry & Stefan Tobler
READER AT LARGE 