Starred review from May 15, 2018
Winner of the Alfaguara Prize, a Spanish-language literary award, Chilean writer Guelfenbein's (The Rest Is Silence, 2011) novel revolves around four characters. Eighty-year-old Vera Sigall, who has achieved cult status for her fiction, is in a Santiago hospital in a locked-in state after a fall. Her neighbor Daniel, a young man hobbled by a foundering career and a failing marriage, addresses Vera directly in the portions of the novel he narrates and does not believe her fall was accidental. The second narrator, Emilia, is a young woman with a phobia about physical contact who has come to Santiago to do research for a thesis on Vera's work. The third narrator is Vera's former lover Horacio Ignacio, a celebrated poet who recounts the history of their affair. Daniel and Emilia meet in the hospital, outside Vera's room, and begin to unravel mysteries surrounding her life and art. At the same time, their deepening bond helps them break free from their own locked-in states. Vera herself remains elusive, but the effect she has on the other characters is profound. This luminous and eloquent novel will appeal in particular to readers with an interest in Latin American literature.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)
Starred review from April 1, 2018
Translated into English after winning the prestigious Spanish-language Alfaguara Prize in 2015, Chilean author Guelfenbein's fifth novel investigates the death of 80-year-old reclusive Chilean author Vera Sigall from three perspectives. Vera is inspired by Clarice Lispector, who had a resurgence in popularity after her Complete Stories were published in English in 2015. The reader is allowed only as close to the enigmatic Vera as the narrators are, and her true character remains a tantalizing mystery. Her neighbor Daniel, a failed architect, finds her collapsed on the ground near her house and sits at the hospital every day waiting for her to recover. He suspects that her fall was no accident. Emilia, a young woman who has come to Santiago to study the symbolism of stars in Vera's work, meets Daniel at the author's bedside. From 50 years ago, there is also the voice of Horacio, a poet and Vera's former lover. Their three stories, along with their memories of Vera leading up to the mysterious fall, create a moving page-turner. VERDICT Suspense, emotions, and magic course throughout this beautifully narrated book. Highly recommended for fans of Latin American literature and general literary mysteries.--Kate Gray, Boston P.L., MA
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