{"title":"2-Month Review","description":"","products":[{"product_id":"death-in-spring","title":"Death in Spring","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003eSeptember 15, 2015 (pb)\u003cbr\u003eMay 15, 2009 (hc, out of print)\u003cbr\u003enovel | pb | 150 pgs\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e5.5\" x 8.5\" \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e978-1-940953-28-1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e\"The greatest contemporary Catalan novelist and possibly the best Mediterranean woman author since Sappho.\" \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e—David H. Rosenthal\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e• \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eConsidered by many to be the grand achievement of her later period, \u003cem\u003eDeath in Spring \u003c\/em\u003eis one of Mercè Rodoreda's most complex and beautifully constructed works. The novel tells the story of the bizarre and destructive customs of a nameless town—burying the dead in trees after filling their mouths with cement to prevent their soul from escaping, or sending a man to swim in the river that courses underneath the town to discover if they will be washed away by a flood—through the eyes of a fourteen-year-old boy who must come to terms with the rhyme and reason of this ritual violence, and with his wild, child-like, and teenaged stepmother, who becomes his playmate. It is through these rituals, and the developing relationships between the boy and the townspeople, that Rodoreda portrays a fully-articulated, though quite disturbing, society. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe horrific rituals, however, stand in stark contrast to the novel’s stunningly poetic language and lush descriptions. Written over a period of twenty years—after Rodoreda was forced into exile following the Spanish Civi War—\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eDeath in Spring\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e is musical and rhythmic, and truly the work of a writer at the height of her powers.\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003eTranslated from the Catalan by Martha Tennent\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003eAbout the Author:\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMercè Rodoreda (1908–1983) is widely regarded as the most important Catalan writer of the twentieth century. Exiled in France and Switzerland following the Spanish Civil War, Rodoreda began writing the novels and short stories—\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eTwenty-two Short Stories\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Time of the Doves\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eCamellia Street\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eGarden by the Sea\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e—that would eventually make her internationally famous, while at the same time earning a living as a seamstress. In the mid-1960s she returned to Catalonia, where she continued to write. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eDeath in Spring\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, her final novel, is also available from Open Letter.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAbout the Translator: \u003c\/strong\u003eMartha Tennent is an English-language translator who works primarily from Catalan and Spanish. She was born in the United States, but has lived most of her life in Barcelona. She received a fellowship from the NEA for her translation of \u003cem\u003eThe Selected Storie\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cem\u003es of Mercè Rodoreda\u003c\/em\u003e. Her work has appeared in \u003cem\u003eEpiphany\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eTwo Lines\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eWords Without Borders\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eA Public Space\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eWorld Literature Today\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003ePEN America\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eReview of Contemporary Fiction\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e\"Rodoreda had bedazzled me by the sensuality with which she reveals things within the atmosphere of her novels. . . . A writer who still knows how to name things has already won half the battle, and Rodoreda knew how to do that as well as anyone who wrote in her mother tongue.\"\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e—Gabriel Garcia Márquez\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e\"Mercè Rodoreda is the writer I cannot stop talking about.\"\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e—Alberto Ríos\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Mercè Rodoreda","offers":[{"title":"pb","offer_id":386493338,"sku":"","price":13.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"ebook (epub)","offer_id":388278800,"sku":"","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0282\/5792\/products\/Death_in_Spring-front.jpg?v=1436296733"},{"product_id":"the-selected-stories-of-merce-rodoreda","title":"The Selected Stories of Mercè Rodoreda","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003eFebruary 15, 2011\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003estories | pb | 250 pgs\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e5.5\" x 8.5\" \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e978-1-934824-31-3\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e\"The humor in the stories, as well as their thrill of realism, comes from a Nabokovian precision of observation and transformation of plain experience into enchanting prose.\" \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e—\u003ci\u003eLos Angeles Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.2;\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eCollected here are thirty of Mercè Rodoreda’s most moving and challenging stories, presented in chronological order of their publication from three of Rodoreda’s most beloved short story collections:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eTwenty-Two Stories\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eIt Seemed Like Silk and Other Stories\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, and \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eMy Christina and Other Stories\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e. These stories capture Rodoreda’s full range of expression, from quiet literary realism to fragmentary impressionism to dark symbolism. Few writers have captured so clearly, or explored so deeply, the lives of women who are stuck somewhere between senseless modernity and suffocating tradition—Rodoreda’s “women are notable for their almost pathological lack of volition, but also for their acute sensitivity, a nearly painful awareness of beauty” (Natasha Wimmer).\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003eTranslated from the Catalan by Martha Tennent\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003eAbout the Author: \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMercè Rodoreda (1908–1983) is widely regarded as the most important Catalan writer of the twentieth century. Exiled in France and Switzerland following the Spanish Civil War, Rodoreda began writing the novels and short stories—\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eTwenty-two Short Stories\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e,\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Times of the Doves\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eCamellia Street\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eGarden by the Sea\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e—that would eventually make her internationally famous, while at the same time earning a living as a seamstress. In the mid-1960s she returned to Catalonia, where she continued to write. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eDeath in Spring\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, her final novel, is also available from Open Letter.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAbout the Translator\u003c\/strong\u003e: \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003eMartha Tennent is an English-language translator who works primarily from Catalan and Spanish. She was born in the United States, but has lived most of her life in Barcelona. She received a fellowship from the NEA for her translation of \u003cem\u003eThe Selected Storie\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cem\u003es of Mercè Rodoreda\u003c\/em\u003e. Her work has appeared in \u003cem\u003eEpiphany\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eTwo Lines\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eWords Without Borders\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eA Public Space\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eWorld Literature Today\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003ePEN America\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eReview of Contemporary Fiction\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\"Rodoreda plumbs a sadness that reaches beyond historic circumstances . . . an almost voluptuous vulnerability.\"\u003c\/span\u003e \u003cbr\u003e—\u003ci\u003eThe Nation\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Mercè Rodoreda","offers":[{"title":"pb","offer_id":404575485,"sku":"","price":15.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"ebook (epub)","offer_id":404575489,"sku":"","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0282\/5792\/products\/stories_highres.jpg?v=1384460804"},{"product_id":"the-physics-of-sorrow","title":"The Physics of Sorrow","description":"\u003ch2\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003eOUT OF PRINT\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: rgb(180, 95, 6); font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'San Francisco', 'Segoe UI', Roboto, 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem;\"\u003eApril 14, 2015\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003enovel | pb | 275 pgs\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e5.5\" x 8.5\" \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e978-1-940953-09-0\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003eFinalist for the 2015 PEN Literary Award for Translation\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003eWinner of the 2016 Jan Michalski Prize for Literature\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e“A quirky, compusively readable book that deftly hints at the emptiness and sadness at its core.”  \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e—\u003cem\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA finalist for both the Strega Europeo and Gregor von Rezzori awards (and winner of every Bulgarian honor possible), \u003cem\u003eThe Physics of Sorrow\u003c\/em\u003e reaffirms Georgi Gospodinov’s place as one of Europe’s most inventive and daring writers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eUsing the myth of the Minotaur as its organizing image, the narrator of Gospodinov’s long-awaited novel constructs a labyrinth of stories about his family, jumping from era to era and viewpoint to viewpoint, exploring the mindset and trappings of Eastern Europeans. Incredibly moving—such as with the story of his grandfather accidentally being left behind at a mill—and extraordinarily funny—see the section on the awfulness of the question “how are you?”—\u003cem\u003ePhysics\u003c\/em\u003e is a book that you can inhabit, tracing connections, following the narrator down various “side passages,” getting pleasantly lost in the various stories and empathizing with the sorrowful, misunderstood Minotaur at the center of it all.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLike the work of Dave Eggers, Tom McCarthy, and Dubravka Ugresic, \u003cem\u003eThe Physics of Sorrow\u003c\/em\u003e draws you in with its unique structure, humanitarian concerns, and stunning storytelling.\u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.4;\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.openletterbooks.org\/pages\/the-physics-of-sorrow-excerpt\" title=\"Physics of Sorrow - Excerpt\" style=\"line-height: 1.4;\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e(Read an Excerpt)\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTranslated from the Bulgarian by Angela Rode\u003cspan color=\"#444444\"\u003el\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003eAbout the Author:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003e Georgi Gospodinov was born in 1968 and is one of the most translated contemporary Bulgarian writers. His first novel, Natural Novel was published by Dalkey Archive Press in 2005 and was praised by the \u003cem\u003eNew Yorker\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/em\u003e, and several other prestigious review outlets. A collection of his short stories, \u003cem\u003eAnd Other Stories\u003c\/em\u003e was published by Northwestern University Press. \u003cem\u003eThe Physics of Sorrow\u003c\/em\u003e is his second novel.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAbout the Translator: \u003c\/strong\u003eAngela Rodel earned an MA in linguistics from UCLA and received a Fulbright Fellowship to study and learn Bulgarian. In 2010, she won a PEN Translation Fund Grant for Georgi Tenev's short story collection. She is one of the most prolific translators of Bulgarian literature working today, and received an NEA Fellowship for her translation of Gospodinov's \u003cem\u003eThe Physics of Sorrow.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e“Georgi Gospodinov wants to blow your mind. . . . The formal playfulness suggests Kundera with A.D.D. and potty jokes.” \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e—\u003cem\u003eVillage Voice\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Georgi Gospodinov","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":1102380052,"sku":"","price":14.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0282\/5792\/products\/Physics_of_Sorrow-Front.jpg?v=1421174425"},{"product_id":"radiant-terminus","title":"Radiant Terminus","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003eFebruary 7, 2017\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003enovel | pb | 468 pgs\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e5.5\" x 8.5\" \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e978-1-940953-52-6\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e“With the calm strangeness of dreams, and humor deepened by a hint of melancholy, these wonderful stories fool around on the frontiers of the imagination.”  \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e—Shelley Jackson\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe most patently sci-fi work of Antoine Volodine’s to be translated into English, \u003cem\u003eRadiant Terminus\u003c\/em\u003e takes place in a Tarkovskian landscape after the fall of the Second Soviet Union. Most of humanity has been destroyed thanks to a number of nuclear meltdowns, but a few communes remain, including one run by Solovyei, a psychotic father with the ability to invade people’s dreams—including those of his daughters—and torment them for thousands of years.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhen a group of damaged individuals seek safety from this nuclear winter in Solovyei’s commune, a plot develops to overthrow him, end his reign of mental abuse, and restore humanity.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFantastical, unsettling, and occasionally funny, \u003cem\u003eRadiant Terminus\u003c\/em\u003e is a key entry in Volodine’s epic literary project that—with its broad landscape, ambitious vision, and interlocking characters and ideas—calls to mind the best of David Mitchell. \u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.4;\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.openletterbooks.org\/pages\/radiant-terminus-excerpt\" title=\"Radiant Terminus - Excerpt\" style=\"line-height: 1.4;\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e(Read an Excerpt)\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTranslated from the French by Jeffrey Zuckerman\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003eAbout the Author:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003e Antoine Volodine Antoine Volodine (a.k.a. Lutz Bassmann, a.k.a. Manuela Draeger) is the primary pseudonym of a French writer who has published more than 40 books, over 20 under this name. Seven of his titles are currently available in English translation, including \u003cem\u003eMinor Angels\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.openletterbooks.org\/products\/bardo-or-not-bardo\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eBardo or Not Bardo\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e, and \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.openletterbooks.org\/products\/post-exoticism-in-ten-lessons-lesson-eleven\"\u003e\u003cem\u003ePost-Exoticism in Ten Lessons, Lesson Eleven\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e“Irreducible to any single literary genre, the Volodinian cosmos is skillfully crafted, fusing elements of science fiction with magical realism and political commentary.” \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e—\u003cem\u003eMusic \u0026amp; Literature\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Antoine Volodine","offers":[{"title":"pb","offer_id":19052007813,"sku":"","price":17.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"ebook","offer_id":13340962619436,"sku":"","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0282\/5792\/products\/Radiant_Terminus-23.jpg?v=1468866341"},{"product_id":"the-invented-part","title":"The Invented Part","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003eMay 16, 2017\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003enovel | pb | 552 pgs\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e6\" x 9\" \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e978-1-940953-56-4\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e“A kaleidoscopic, open-hearted, shamelessly polymathic storyteller, the kind who brings a blast of oxygen into the room.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e—Jonathan Lethem\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e\"\u003c\/span\u003eA wonderfully inventive, intricate and entertaining novel on what it means to be a writer, and a reader.\"—John Banville\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAn aging writer, disillusioned with the state of literary culture, attempts to disappear in the most cosmically dramatic manner: traveling to the Hadron Collider, merging with the God particle, and transforming into an omnipresent deity—a meta-writer—capable of rewriting reality.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWith biting humor and a propulsive, contagious style, amid the accelerated particles of his characteristic obsessions—the writing of F. Scott Fitzgerald, the music of Pink Floyd and The Kinks, \u003cem\u003e2001: A Space Odyssey\u003c\/em\u003e, the links between great art and the lives of the artists who create it—Fresán takes us on a whirlwind tour of writers and muses, madness and genius, friendships, broken families, and alternate realities, exploring themes of childhood, loss, memory, aging, and death.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDrawing inspiration from the scope of modern classics and the structural pyrotechnics of the postmodern masters, the Argentine once referred to as “a pop Borges” delivers a powerful defense of great literature, a celebration of reading and writing, of the invented parts—the stories we tell ourselves to give shape to our world. \u003cem\u003e(\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.openletterbooks.org\/pages\/the-invented-part-excerpt\" title=\"The Invented Part - Excerpt\"\u003eRead an Excerpt\u003c\/a\u003e)\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTranslated from the Spanish by Will Vanderhyden\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003eAbout the Author:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003e Rodrigo Fresán is the author of nine novels, including \u003cem\u003eKensington Gardens\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eMantra\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eThe Bottom of the Sky\u003c\/em\u003e. His works incorporate many elements from science-fiction (Philip K. Dick in particular) alongside pop culture and literary references.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAbout the Translator: \u003c\/strong\u003eWill Vanderhyden received an MA in Literary Translation Studies from the University of Rochester. He has translated fiction by Carlos Labbé, Edgardo Cozarinsky, Alfredo Bryce Echenique, Juan Marsé, Rafael Sánchez Ferlosio, Rodrigo Fresán, and Elvio Gandolfo. He received an NEA Fellowship to work on \u003cem\u003eThe Invented Part\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e“Rodrigo Fresán is a marvelous writer, a direct descendent of Adolfo Bioy Casares and Jorge Luis Borges, but with his own voice and of his own time.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e—John Banville\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Rodrigo Fresán","offers":[{"title":"pb","offer_id":29468371657,"sku":"","price":18.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"ebook (epub)","offer_id":12950206808108,"sku":"","price":15.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0282\/5792\/products\/9781940953564.jpg?v=1484690287"},{"product_id":"tomas-jonsson-bestseller","title":"Tómas Jónsson, Bestseller","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003eJuly 11, 2017\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003enovel | pb | 500 pgs\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e5.5\" x 8.5\" \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e978-1-940953-60-1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e“Guðbergur Bergsson achieved success with his novel \u003cem\u003eTómas Jónsson, Bestseller\u003c\/em\u003e, which shocked Icelandic readers in innumerable ways.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e—Dagný Kristjánsdóttir\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eA retired, senile bank clerk confined to his basement apartment, Tómas Jónsson decides that, since memoirs are all the rage, he’s going to write his own—a sure bestseller—that will also right the wrongs of contemporary Icelandic society. Egoistic, cranky, and digressive, Tómas blasts away while relating pick-up techniques, meditations on chamber pot use, ways to assign monetary value to noise pollution, and much more. His rants parody and subvert the idea of the memoir—something that’s as relevant today in our memoir-obsessed society as it was when the novel was first published.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eConsidered by many to be the “Icelandic \u003cem\u003eUlysses\u003c\/em\u003e” for its wordplay, neologisms, structural upheaval, and reinvention of what’s possible in Icelandic writing, \u003cem\u003eTómas Jónsson, Bestseller\u003c\/em\u003e was a bestseller, heralding a new age of Icelandic literature. \u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e(\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.openletterbooks.org\/pages\/tomas-jonsson-bestseller-excerpt\"\u003eRead an Excerpt\u003c\/a\u003e)\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003eTranslated from the Icelandic by Lytton Smith\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003eAbout the Author:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e Guðbergur Bergsson is the author of twenty-one books, from novels to children’s literature, and a translator from Spanish into Icelandic. He has received the Icelandic Literary Prize and the Nordic Prize\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAbout the\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003cstrong\u003eTranslator: \u003c\/strong\u003eLytton Smith is the author of \u003cem\u003eThe All-Purpose Magical Tent\u003c\/em\u003e, and has translated works from Bragi Ólafsson, Jón Gnarr, and Kristín Ómarsdóttir, among others.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e“Bergsson is known in his homeland for his translations of Gabriel García Márquez, and the debt to García Márquez is clear in this sparsely sensual, idyllic fable of country matters.”\u003c\/span\u003e \u003cbr\u003e—\u003cem\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Guðbergur Bergsson","offers":[{"title":"pb","offer_id":29499004233,"sku":"","price":17.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"ebook (epub)","offer_id":13561528647724,"sku":"","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0282\/5792\/products\/9781940953601.jpg?v=1484758083"},{"product_id":"fox","title":"Fox","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003eApril 17, 2018\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003enovel | pb | 308 pgs\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e5.5\" x 8.5\" \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e978-1-940953-76-2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003eWinner of the 2016 Neustadt International Prize for Literature\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eBest Book of 2018 at \u003cem\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eKirkus\u003c\/em\u003e, and the \u003cem\u003eNew Statesman\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e\"An astonishingly perceptive, elegantly witty, utterly original exploration of the age-old question ‘How Do Stories Come About.’\" \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e—Alberto Manguel\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWith \u003cspan\u003echaracteristic wit and narrative force, \u003ci\u003eFox\u003c\/i\u003e takes us from Russia to Japan, through Balkan minefields and \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAmerican road trips, and from the 1920s to the present, as \u003c\/span\u003eit explores the power of storytelling and literary invention, \u003cspan\u003enotions of betrayal, and the randomness of human lives \u003c\/span\u003eand biographies. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eUsing the duplicitous and shape-shifting fox of Eastern folklore as a motif, Ugresic constructs a novel that reinvents itself over and over, blending nuggets of literary trivia (like \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003ehow Nabokov named the \u003ci\u003eNeonympha dorothea dorothea\u003c\/i\u003e butterfly after the woman who drove him cross-country), with the timeless story of a woman trying to escape her \u003c\/span\u003ehometown and find love to magical effect. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePropelled by literary footnotes and “minor” characters, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003ci\u003eFox\u003c\/i\u003e is vintage Ugresic, recovering the voices of those on \u003c\/span\u003ethe margins with a verve that’s impassioned, learned, and hilarious. \u003cem\u003e(\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.openletterbooks.org\/pages\/fox-excerpt\"\u003eRead an Excerpt\u003c\/a\u003e)\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003eTranslated from the Croatian by Ellen Elias-Bursać \u0026amp; David Williams\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003eAbout the Author:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e Dubravka Ugresic is the author of seven works of fiction, including \u003cem\u003eThe Museum of Unconditional Surrender\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eBaba Yaga Laid an Egg\u003c\/em\u003e, along with six collections of essays, including \u003cem\u003eThank You for Not Reading\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eKaraoke Culture\u003c\/em\u003e, a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award for Nonfiction. She has won, or been shorlisted for, more than a dozen prizes, including the NIN Award, Austrian State Prize for European Literature, Heinrich Mann Prize, Independent Foreign Fiction Prize, Man Booker International Prize, and the James Tiptree Jr. Award. In 2016, she received the Neustadt International Prize for Literature (the “American Nobel”) for her body of work.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAbout the Translators: \u003c\/strong\u003eEllen Elias-Bursać has been translating fiction and nonfiction by Bosnian, Croatian, and Serbian writers since the 1980s, including novels and short stories by David Albahari, Dubravka Ugresic, Daša Drndić, and Karim Zaimovič. She is co-author of a textbook for the study of Bosnian, Croatian, and Serbian with Ronelle Alexander and author of \u003cem\u003eTranslating Evidence and Interpreting Testimony at a War Crimes Tribunal: Working in a Tug-of-War\u003c\/em\u003e, which was awarded the Mary Zirin Prize in 2015.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDavid Williams is the author of \u003cem\u003eWriting Postcommunism\u003c\/em\u003e, and translated Ugresic’s Europe in Sepia and Karaoke Culture.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e“a betrayal of the reader’s deep urge to categorize and pigeonhole. . . . You can’t pin her down, and that’s her game.” \u003cbr\u003e—Sam Sacks, \u003cem\u003eWall Street Journal\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e“\u003c\/span\u003eUgresic’s attachment to absurdity leads her down paths where other writers fear to tread.\u003cspan\u003e” \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e—\u003cem\u003eThe Independent\u003c\/em\u003e (UK)\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“It is a book of ideas, of losses, of love and sorrow, of wars and migration: it is a book, in other words, perfect for our 21st century.” \u003cbr\u003e—Micheline Marcom\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Dubravka Ugresic","offers":[{"title":"pb","offer_id":6750346215463,"sku":"","price":16.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"ebook (epub)","offer_id":12951266492460,"sku":"","price":14.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0282\/5792\/products\/Fox-front.jpg?v=1517366956"},{"product_id":"the-dreamed-part","title":"The Dreamed Part","description":"\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eNovember 12, 2019 \u003cbr\u003enovel | pb | 550 pgs.\u003cbr\u003e6.0\" x 9.0\"\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e978-1-948830-05-8 \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFollowing his failure to break into the Hadron Collider and merge with the so-called “God particle,” The Writer from \u003ci\u003eThe Invented Part\u003c\/i\u003e can no longer write or sleep. Instead, he lies awake, imagining and reimagining key moments of his life, spinning out a series of insomniac visions every bit as thought-provoking as they are dreamlike. A mysterious foundation dedicated to preserving dreams, suddenly invaluable in the wake of the dream-eradicating White Plague; a psycho-lyrical-photophobic terrorist; an electric and mercurial lullaby; three lunatic sisters (and an eclipsed brother) who write from the darkest side of the most wuthering lunar heights; a hallucinating prisoner and a hallucinatory family; a genius addicted to butterflies and an FBI agent addicted to that genius; a looney and lysergic uncle and parents who model but are not model parents; a revolutionary staging of Shakespeare for the children of chic guerrillas; a city of sleepless bookshops; and a writer who might be 100 years old. Or not.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWith characteristic wit, careening style, and array of cultural references, high and low and everything in between—from Shakespeare, the Brontë sisters, and Vladimir Nabokov to Talking Heads, superhero movies, and Rick and Morty—the second volume of Fresán’s trilogy is one of the most ambitious, unique, and entertaining novels of our time.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTranslated from the Spanish by Will Vanderhyden\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003eAbout the Author:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRodrigo Fresán\u003cspan\u003e is the author of ten works of fiction, including Kensington Gardens, Mantra, and The Invented Part, winner of the 2018 Best Translated Book Award. A self-professed “referential maniac,” his works incorporate many elements from science fiction (Philip K. Dick in particular) alongside pop culture and literary references. According to Jonathan Lethem, “he’s a kaleidoscopic, open-hearted, shamelessly polymathic storyteller, the kind who brings a blast of oxygen into the room.” In 2017, he received the Prix Roger Caillois awarded by PEN Club France every year to both a French and a Latin American writer.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAbout the Translator:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWill Vanderhyden\u003cspan\u003e received an MA in Literary Translation Studies from the University of Rochester. He has translated fiction by Carlos Labbé, Edgardo Cozarinsky, Alfredo Bryce Echenique, Juan Marsé, Rafael Sánchez Ferlosio, Rodrigo Fresán, and Elvio Gandolfo. He received NEA and Lannan fellowships to translate another of Fresán’s novels, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Invented Part.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Rodrigo Fresán","offers":[{"title":"pb","offer_id":14474724900908,"sku":"","price":18.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"ebook (epub)","offer_id":31466501963891,"sku":"","price":15.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0282\/5792\/products\/9781948830058_FC.jpg?v=1556126842"},{"product_id":"four-by-four","title":"Four by Four","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003eMay 5, 2020\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003enovel | pb | 230 pgs.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e5.5\" x 8.5\" \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\" color=\"#b45f06\"\u003e978-1-948830-14-0\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.publishersweekly.com\/pw\/by-topic\/industry-news\/tip-sheet\/article\/79827-pw-picks-books-of-the-week-april-22-2019.html\"\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e“With short, propulsive chapters, Sara Mesa creates an unforgettable gothic landscape, centered on the mysterious and menacing Wybrany College, that twists in ways that unsettle and thrill. In \u003ci\u003eFour by Four\u003c\/i\u003e, Mesa’s sentences are clear as glass, but when you look through you will be terrified by what you see.”—Laura van den Berg, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Third Hotel \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSet entirely at Wybrany College—a school where the wealthy keep their kids safe from the chaos erupting in the cities—\u003cem\u003eFour by Four\u003c\/em\u003e is a novel of insinuation and gossip, in which the truth about Wybrany’s “program” is always palpable, but never explicit. The mysteries populating the novel open with the disappearance of one of the “special,” scholarship students. As the first part unfolds, it becomes clear that all is not well in Wybrany, and that something more sordid lurks beneath the surface.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn the second part—a self-indulgent, wry diary written by an imposter who has infiltrated the school as a substitute teacher—the eerie sense of what’s happening in this space removed from society, becomes more acute and potentially sinister.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e An exploration of the relationship between the powerful and powerless—and the repetition of these patterns—Mesa’s \"sophisticated nightmare\" calls to mind great works of gothic literature (think Shirley Jackson) and social thrillers to create a unique, unsettling view of freedom and how a fear of the outside world can create monsters.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTranslated from the Spanish by Katie Whittemore\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003eAbout the Author:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSara Mesa is the author of eight works of fiction, including \u003cem\u003eScar\u003c\/em\u003e (winner of the Ojo Critico Prize), \u003cem\u003eFour by Four\u003c\/em\u003e (a finalist for the Herralde Prize), \u003cem\u003eAn Invisible Fire\u003c\/em\u003e (winner of the Premio Málaga de Novela), and \u003cem\u003eCara de Pan \u003c\/em\u003e(forthcoming from Open Letter). Her works have been translated into more than ten different languages, and has been widely praised for her concise, sharp writing style.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAbout the Translator:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eKatie Whittemore is graduate of the University of NH (BA), Cambridge University (M.Phil), and Middlebury College (MA), and was a 2018 Bread Loaf Translators Conference participant. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in \u003cem\u003eTwo Lines\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Arkansas International\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Common\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eGulf Coast\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eLos Angeles Review\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Brooklyn Rail\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eInTranslation\u003c\/em\u003e. Current projects include novels by Spanish authors Sara Mesa, Javier Serena, Aliocha Coll, Aroa Moreno Durán, Nuria Labari, Katixa Agirre, and Juan Gómez Bárcena.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b76003;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePraise for Sara Mesa:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e“The atmospheric unraveling of the mystery will keep you turning the page; the ending will leave you stunned—Mesa’s \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eFour by Four\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e is a tautly written literary thriller that juxtaposes the innocence of children with the fetish of control; a social parable that warns against the silence of oppression and isolation through its disquieting, sparse prose.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Kelsey Westenberg, Seminary Co-op\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan class=\"e2ma-style\"\u003e“Very few authors evoke a visceral reaction with prose in the way that Sara Mesa does. A master of tension building, Mesa constructs lurid phantasmagoric worlds that are equal parts mysterious and unnerving. \u003cem\u003eFour by Four\u003c\/em\u003e sounds an alarm on the dangers of power, privilege, and the self-delusions told in order to hide complicity. A work of high gothic art, \u003cem\u003eFour by Four\u003c\/em\u003e solidifies Mesa as one of the strongest female voices in contemporary Spanish literature.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e—Cristina Rodriguez, Deep Vellum Books\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e“Stylistically, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eFour by Four\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e’s narrative structure is both dazzling and dizzying, as its perfect pacing only enhances the metastasizing dread and dis-ease. . . . Mesa exposes the thin veneer of venerability to be hiding something menacing and unforgivable—and \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eFour by Four\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e lays it bare for all the world to see.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Jeremy Garber, Powell’s Books\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e“\u003c\/span\u003eSara Mesa. Don’t forget that name. The finalist for the 30th Premio Herralde de Novela. Read it. Share it. Talk about it. Open the book and begin. You won’t be able to put it down.\u003cspan\u003e”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e—Uxue, \u003cem\u003eUn libro al día\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e“\u003c\/span\u003eSara Mesa has brought a new narrative voice to the scene that is in a position to bear important fruit for the genre of the Spanish novel in the twenty-first century. Already in \u003cem\u003eFour by Four\u003c\/em\u003e an author has been discovered with the capacity for artistic integration of different stylistic registers within the same novel and with a real talent for representing reality. \u003cem\u003eFour by Four\u003c\/em\u003e is an account of the sinister relationships of power corrupted by fear and latent violence that feed this social parable of Kafkian roots.\u003cspan\u003e”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e—Ángel Basanta, \u003cem\u003eEl Mundo\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e“\u003c\/span\u003eWhat can I say about a story in which everything works? . . . A new author that will surprise us further in future.\u003cspan\u003e”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e—Sergio Sancor, \u003cem\u003eLibros y literatura\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Sara Mesa","offers":[{"title":"pb","offer_id":29707732713516,"sku":"","price":15.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"ebook (epub)","offer_id":31466594861171,"sku":"","price":12.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0282\/5792\/products\/Four_by_Four_cvr-web.jpg?v=1582737356"},{"product_id":"cars-on-fire","title":"Cars on Fire","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003eApril 14, 2020 \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003estories | pb | 140 pgs.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e5.5\" x 8.5\" \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan color=\"#b45f06\" style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e978-1-948830-16-4\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.publishersweekly.com\/pw\/by-topic\/industry-news\/tip-sheet\/article\/79827-pw-picks-books-of-the-week-april-22-2019.html\"\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e“When you live in an adopted country, when you’re an exile in your own body, names are simply lists that dull the reality of death.”\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eCars on Fire\u003c\/em\u003e, Mónica Ramón Ríos’s electric, uncompromising English-language debut, unfolds through a series of characters—the writer, the patient, the immigrant, the professor, the student—whose identities are messy and ever-shifting. A speechwriter is employed writing for would-be dictators, but plays in a rock band as a means of protest. A failed Marxist cuts off her own head as a final poetic act. With incredible formal range, from the linear to the more free-wheeling, the real to the fantastical to the dystopic, \u003cspan\u003eRíos\u003c\/span\u003e offers striking, jarring glimpses into life as a woman and an immigrant. Set in New York City, New Jersey, and Chile’s La Zona Central, the stories in \u003cem\u003eCars on Fire\u003c\/em\u003e offer powerful remembrances to those lost to violence, and ultimately make the case for the power of art, love, and feminine desire to subvert the oppressive forces—xenophobia, neoliberalism, social hierarchies within the academic world—that shape life in Chile and the United States.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003eTranslated from the Spanish by Robin Myers\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #444444;\"\u003eAbout the Author:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMónica Ramón Ríos was born in Santiago de Chile. She is the author of the novel \u003cem\u003eSegundos\u003c\/em\u003e (2010) and the twin novels \u003cem\u003eAlias el Rucio\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eAlias el Rocío\u003c\/em\u003e (2014-2015). As a scholar, she has written extensively on Latin American literature and film. Her short stories have appeared in several anthologies and journals such as \u003cem\u003eAnomaly\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eGranta\u003c\/em\u003e [Spain], \u003cem\u003eAsymptote\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eAlba\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eBuensalvaje\u003c\/em\u003e. Ríos is also one of the creators of Sangría Editora, a publishing collective based in Santiago and New York.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAbout the Translator:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRobin Myers\u003cstrong\u003e \u003c\/strong\u003ewas born in New York and is based in Mexico City. She is the author of several collections of poetry published as bilingual editions in Mexico, Argentina, and Spain. Her translations have appeared in \u003cem\u003eAsymptote\u003c\/em\u003e, the \u003cem\u003eLos Angeles Review of Books\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eWaxwing\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eInventory\u003c\/em\u003e, and elsewhere. In 2009, she was a fellow of the American Literary Translators Association (ALTA); in 2014, she was a resident translator at the Banff Literary Translation Centre (BILTC). Her translation of Ezequiel Zaidenwerg’s \u003cem\u003eLyric Poetry Is Dead\u003c\/em\u003e was published by Cardboard House Press in 2018.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #b45f06;\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cspan mce-data-marked=\"1\"\u003ePraise for \u003ci\u003eCars on Fire\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan mce-data-marked=\"1\"\u003e“These stylish, often strange stories are like cars on fire themselves—cacophonous, melodious, tragic—and each burn like a symbol of urban resistance. An important and unique contribution to immigrant and protest literature of the Americas.”\u003cstrong\u003e—Fernando A. Flores, author of \u003cem\u003eTears of the Trufflepig\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Revolution is being waged outside the windows and inside the heads of Mónica Ramón Ríos's characters, obsessed by elsewheres, clawing away the veneer of the everyday. Like a throng of eloquent protestors, electric with rage, these stories occupy a gritty intersection where literature, film, history, and dream cross paths.”\u003cstrong\u003e—Esther Allen\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003cem\u003eCars on Fire\u003c\/em\u003e describes a prismatic, constellated world in highly chiseled, original prose. This is a book as wise as it is clever, probing, playful, irreverent, original, as if written by an old Kafkan soul in a modern-day, variegated New York, who, with a telling smile and nod to the reader, has acceded to open an ancient portal for a split-second and share a private glimpse of this newly absurd, charged and wispy world in transformation.”\u003cstrong\u003e—Valerie Miles\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Ríos’s mesmerizing English-language debut invokes an array of writers, auto-plant workers, Marxists, immigrants, actresses, and murderers. Ríos’s themes are unwaveringly contemporary—LGBTQ and feminist issues; immigrant life; politics—but it is artistry, not dogma, that guides her prose. This is art house literature at its best: provocative, alluring, and uncompromising.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan mce-data-marked=\"1\"\u003e—\u003cem\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/em\u003e, starred review\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan mce-data-marked=\"1\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Mónica Ramón Ríos","offers":[{"title":"pb","offer_id":29708122816556,"sku":"","price":14.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"ebook (epub)","offer_id":31466465034355,"sku":"","price":9.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0282\/5792\/products\/9781948830164_FC.jpg?v=1578089209"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0282\/5792\/collections\/2-Month_Review.jpg?v=1492708662","url":"https:\/\/www.openletterbooks.org\/collections\/2-month-review\/lytton-smith+france+katie-whittemore+latin-america.oembed","provider":"Open Letter","version":"1.0","type":"link"}