Paradais
First edition cover
AuthorFernanda Melchor
Original titlePáradais
TranslatorSophie Hughes
CountryMexico
LanguageSpanish
PublisherLiteratura Random House
Publication date
2 February 2021[1]
Published in English
23 March 2022[2]
Media typePrint (paperback)
Pages200
ISBN978-607-31-8797-8
OCLC1179050066
863/.7

Paradais (originally titled Páradais in Spanish) is a novel by Mexican author Fernanda Melchor. It was published in its original Spanish in 2021 by Literatura Random House.[3] An English translation by Sophie Hughes was published in 2022 by Fitzcarraldo Editions and New Direction Books.

Benjamin P. Russell of the Houston Chronicle described the novel as a "commentary on" the "often haunting facts" of Mexico, stating "a more incisive commentary [...] would be hard to find."[4]

This was the second Melchor novel to receive an officially published English translation.[5]

Contents

The setting is the gated community Paradais, located in the state of Veracruz. The novel is about a teenage duo, Franco Andrade and Leopoldo "Polo" García Chaparro,[6] who do criminal activity together.[7]

Characters

Franco, who lives in Paradais,[6] has the nickname "fatboy".[8] Franco is from a wealthy family, has little social success. Franco wants to have intercourse but has not found a willing female partner.[7] Gabriella Martin of Harvard Review wrote that Franco is "Exhibiting all the qualities of a classic “incel,”[...]"[8] Franco's father is a lawyer.[6] Franco has a sexual obsession with Señora Marián.[8]

Polo is from a low socioeconomic background and works at Paradise by gardening. Polo, who did not graduate from senior high school,[8] is 16 years old.[6] Justin Torres of The New York Times compared Polo to Bigger Thomas.[7]

Señora Marián is married to a television host and has two children. She lives adjacent to Franco.[8]

Reception

Justin Torres of The New York Times stated that the work is "seductive" despite the "unbroken wall of text" that makes a "visual effect", and he praised the work of the translator for showing "vitality of the prose".[7] The English translation of the novel was longlisted for the 2022 International Booker Prize.[9]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Páradais". Penguin Libros (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 8 November 2022. Retrieved 7 November 2022.
  2. ↑ "Paradais". Fitzcarraldo Editions. Retrieved 7 November 2022.
  3. ↑ "Páradais / Paradise". Penguin Random House. Retrieved 2022-11-07.
  4. ↑ Russell, Benjamin P. (2022-05-25). "Mexican author Fernanda Melchor explores the human capacity for violence, and grace". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 2022-11-07.
  5. ↑ Pressly, Lowry (2022-05-23). "In the Tongue a Knife, in the Knife a Tongue: On Fernanda Melchor's "Paradais"". Los Angeles Review of Books. Retrieved 2022-11-07.
  6. 1 2 3 4 McGee, Marcus (2022-08-28). "A Beautiful and Terrible Paradise: On Fernanda Melchor's "Paradais"". Los Angeles Review of Books. Retrieved 2022-11-07.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Torres, Justin (2022-05-10). "Inside a Gated Paradise, Evil Breeds and Strikes". The New York Times. Retrieved 2022-11-07.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 Martin, Gabriella. "Paradais". Harvard Review. Retrieved 2022-11-07.
  9. ↑ "The 2022 International Booker Prize". thebookerprizes.com.

Further reading

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