My first Latin American read of the year and my first 5 star. This book has absolutely blown my mind. It won't be for everyone as it's a real strange My first Latin American read of the year and my first 5 star. This book has absolutely blown my mind. It won't be for everyone as it's a real strange mix of literary fiction, speculative fiction, satire and political commentary, but for me this was just an incredible book in how unique and strong the voices were.
A group of Indigenous people from the Amazon are captured by a committee of white men and brought to Buenos Aires in the hope of opening Argentine's first Ethnographic Theme Park where they will be put on display for the world to see. In the cargo that comes with them is a sloth which the men discover has the ability to give telepathic powers to whoever it scratches, 'bonding' the two minds so that they can share memories and experience each others perspective.
The satirical tone in this book was perfect and it really focused on the megalomania of the committee and their desire for power and gain. Some of the sentences in the beginning section of the novel were hilarious but frightening in how ignorant they were to the indigenous tribe. Once the book started to venture into the speculative realm it got super interesting and I found myself gasping at what I was reading. It really takes you on a wild ride but I thought it was absolutely fascinating, and also shed light on how those in power will take the most amazing phenomenon and supernatural artifacts and just use it for political gain. It was quite a stark comment on the Argentine political situation and history and how warped the government and paranoia surrounding it has become.
All-in-all, this is a novel about corruption and how the western world and it's politics smothers and destroys everything it comes into contact with. I absolutely loved this book and thought it was one of the most unique things I have ever read. I'd love to see it on the IB 2025 longlist. ...more
Nettel is such an incredible writer. Coupled with Harvey鈥檚 stunning translation, this short story collection is just as gripping and well written as SNettel is such an incredible writer. Coupled with Harvey鈥檚 stunning translation, this short story collection is just as gripping and well written as Still Born. It obviously doesn鈥檛 have the emotional pull or the character building of that novel, but I loved the slightly eeriness of these stories and the deadpan tone which was just perfect. Nettel shows how when we zoom in on the lives around us which seem perfect, strange things are actually happened beneath the surface. This is a collection which will definitely grip you and I genuinely loved every story inside it - they were all a perfect length as well. Can鈥檛 wait for more from both of these women! ...more
Some really striking, inventive, Borgesian stories. These are the kind of eerie tales that I love to read in a collection and I鈥檓 so glad I finally goSome really striking, inventive, Borgesian stories. These are the kind of eerie tales that I love to read in a collection and I鈥檓 so glad I finally got round to it. I definitely recommend this if you are a fan of proto-Latin American magic realism type stories with a mix of surrealism and philosophy. ...more
This was hit and miss for me so giving it a rating in the middle. Some of the stories were really great and reminded me of her novel, but others I jusThis was hit and miss for me so giving it a rating in the middle. Some of the stories were really great and reminded me of her novel, but others I just didn鈥檛 gel with a thought they were quite mid. I love this author鈥檚 longer work when I can really sink into the voice and the atmosphere she creates as it was some of the shorter stories I failed to click with. ...more
I really loved this! It鈥檚 about a heroin addict who takes the train go a random town with enough heroin left to end his own life, but he ends up gettiI really loved this! It鈥檚 about a heroin addict who takes the train go a random town with enough heroin left to end his own life, but he ends up getting mixed up with a bunch of drug dealers and strange people who rob him of his stash so he ends up just walking around in a sort of high-limbo waiting to see if he will die.
The way the narrative straddled the line between life and death was fantastic and I found it super easy and enjoyable to read the main character鈥檚 voice. The way the afterlife was explored was so clever and how the book tricks you into questioning what is real and what could just be a hallucination because of the drugs is done so well.
I don鈥檛 usually like books which are quite hallucinatory but the way this was structured and told was just fantastic and kept you hooked. It was never confusing but always engaging, funny and thought provoking. I really can鈥檛 wait to read more from this author because from this book I can tell his writing is completely brilliant. ...more
A short but lovely little memoir, written by the son of Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Mercedes Barcha. It details the quick decline of Marquez's health aA short but lovely little memoir, written by the son of Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Mercedes Barcha. It details the quick decline of Marquez's health and how the family came together to look after him as he got sicker and finally in his final days. I find it crazy how much his illness and death affected not just the family and community but the entire country. The family were constantly hounded by the press and fans wanting to know if he was okay, and after his death the country seemed to enter into a period of mourning. It is testament to how amazing and influential he was as a writer and figure. I loved how the memoir closed where it spoke about Gabo reading back his own work and not recognising it, wondering how he wrote it and where all the emotions came from. This was such a good little memoir and I'd recommend it for anyone interested in Gabo's life....more
I loved the first and last story in this collection but the middle stories didn鈥檛 stand out much to me. I liked how it was written and how there was aI loved the first and last story in this collection but the middle stories didn鈥檛 stand out much to me. I liked how it was written and how there was a real atmosphere and story created from the tales of different women in the same place, I just wish they would have been a little less same-y so I could have appreciated each one more by itself. The first story was brilliant though, really visceral and darkly comical. The last story was really chilling and explored the idea of femicide in such a terrifying and powerful way. I鈥檇 be looking forward to reading more of de la Cerda鈥檚 work as she writes some really strong voices, it鈥檚 just the short story form which didn鈥檛 jump out for me here. ...more
A beautiful read and won鈥檛 be my last Falco. Still reeling from the departure of his lover, the narrator lives in a remote house and garden and uses tA beautiful read and won鈥檛 be my last Falco. Still reeling from the departure of his lover, the narrator lives in a remote house and garden and uses the time to ponder on the nature surrounding him and reflect on his own past.
I loved the rumination on how to move forward in life when someone you love leaves you, and how he used nature as a healing point for his heart as well as his writing. At the beginning he feels like the writer in him has dried up but as the book closes you can see the narrator is eager to start a new chapter in life and finds words and nature so much more inspiring than before. The end chapter where he has a conversation in his head with his ex-lover was so emotional and made me almost tear up.
Such a beautifully written book which looks deeply at the human condition and need for connection with both the earth and other human beings. ...more
I don鈥檛 know if it was just me but hardly any of this went in. I loved the beginning about Alma and her friend and deciding to create the cemetery butI don鈥檛 know if it was just me but hardly any of this went in. I loved the beginning about Alma and her friend and deciding to create the cemetery but as soon as it went into the story about Filomena I just completely lost it. I didn鈥檛 feel like there was a great flow to the story and I felt completely overwhelmed by the way it was written. I feel sad because it started out quite good but just dipped a lot for me and I found myself really not enjoying it or clicking with it. ...more
Catching up on reviews so sorry for spam. Amora is a Brazilian short story collection which celebrates love between women. The stories are all really Catching up on reviews so sorry for spam. Amora is a Brazilian short story collection which celebrates love between women. The stories are all really short but they are like snippets of different women鈥檚 lives and capture the breadth of the lesbian experience. It showed queer women of different ages and different circumstances, some with loving partners, others battling unrequited love and some having affairs. I really liked how the book was structured and that you each story felt refreshing and different from the last. I鈥檇 really recommend if you are looking for a good short story collection that鈥檚 a bit different with really good queer and lesbian representation. ...more
Fitzcarraldo have been knocking it out of the park with their non-fiction recently. This was a really tender book about a man who is interviewing his Fitzcarraldo have been knocking it out of the park with their non-fiction recently. This was a really tender book about a man who is interviewing his father. His father was a truck driver who drove all over Brazil for his job and was hardly at home. Lately he has been diagnosed with a bunch of health conditions including cancer and heart disease, and the author details both the fathers younger life and how he now has to take care of him in his old age.
It was really wonderfully written and it was great to learn even more about Brazil....more
Flew though this - the book looks at four Chilean women in history who were guilty of murdering men. I like how it looked at these women through the lFlew though this - the book looks at four Chilean women in history who were guilty of murdering men. I like how it looked at these women through the lens of modern feminism and how the idea of 鈥榟ysteria鈥� and women not being capable of actually committing murder because they are so 鈥榝ragile鈥� so interesting. Plus the idea that men are the only one in a relationship to have honour, and so only women can be arrested for adultery because it鈥檚 not possible for men to dishonour a woman as she doesn鈥檛 have any. I find it interesting how much these women put fear into the heart of the patriarchy in how a lot of them coincided with each wave of feminism, and how the idea of a woman being able to act with male-like violence was so shocking. It鈥檚 crazy how none of the women actually served the appropriate time for their crimes but just goes to show the failures of the patriarchy. Very interesting read!...more
Full of absolute bangers. I鈥檓 convinced Monica Ojeda is a goddess like everything she writes I鈥檓 absolutely obsessed with. The Kermit the Frog story wFull of absolute bangers. I鈥檓 convinced Monica Ojeda is a goddess like everything she writes I鈥檓 absolutely obsessed with. The Kermit the Frog story was my favourite out of the whole collection because it was just insane. Every story sent a chill up my spine and was so atmospheric and well written. What a collection and can鈥檛 wait to read more from each of the authors. ...more
4.5 stars. Enriquez is the only author who has managed to absolutely terrify me with just the power of her words and imagery. This collection, like he4.5 stars. Enriquez is the only author who has managed to absolutely terrify me with just the power of her words and imagery. This collection, like her previous two, explores the gothic horror of Buenos Aires and looks at both the paranormal and the strangeness of the city and the people who inhabit it. The stories felt a lot more muted at first and I was worried this was going to be a weak collection, but the last three stories in this book absolutely blew me away. They were just incredible and it reminded me of how amazing and unique she is as a writer. The last three stories are what really bumped the rating up for me. I'm really excited for this to get out into the world and for everyone to read more of her work because she is just fantastic at making your skin crawl and an absolute staple of Latin American horror....more
I really loved this, but it felt short and unfinished. I know that鈥檚 not really a valid critique of the work because it really is a piece of unfinisheI really loved this, but it felt short and unfinished. I know that鈥檚 not really a valid critique of the work because it really is a piece of unfinished fiction, so I鈥檓 not sure what else to say. I loved the main character and the range of emotions it explored. The ending was great, if it even was supposed to be the ending. I would have loved to see this story in its true fleshed out and fully finished form as I know it would have been even better. But as it stands this was a really great story and Marquez鈥檚 writing still as great as ever. ...more
What an amazing little read. This book expertly blends the intimacy of young love and the unyielding bond of family with the terror of possible politiWhat an amazing little read. This book expertly blends the intimacy of young love and the unyielding bond of family with the terror of possible political turmoil. It is split into three parts and first follows a young couple who are both experiencing their first relationship against the backdrop of a looming military coup in Chile. The following parts follow the generation which follows them who are also on a search for love but are struggling to reconcile their familial connection with the relationship they have to the Latin American land and political upheaval which came before them. The themes here are so expertly blended and I loved how intimate yet fundamental it felt with its mix of political commentary and coming-of-age. A really great read which is essential to anyone that is interested in Latin American literature - reminded me a lot of the depth of Alejandro Zambra鈥檚 work with a bit more of the cultural history thrown in. ...more
Rachel Louise
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Books:
latin-america
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