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BOOKS | Reviews
POETRY THERESA MUÑOZ Settle (Vagabond Voices) ●●●●●
Theresa Muñoz's debut poetry collection, Settle, can be summed up with a line from the poem, 'Settlement': 'here is our life / on sheets / of paper.' This collection explores the experiences the writer and her family have had with emigration (Muñoz was born in Vancouver before moving to Scotland, while her parents moved from the Philippines to Toronto). As such, these pieces feel
extremely personal: Muñoz's life is indeed here before us, in poetry, on paper.
A highlight is 'Twenty Two', in which the poet writes of 'the age my mother and I emigrated to cities / we had never been, years apart', and asks 'should I go back, or have I begun again?'. This poem encapsulates the beauty of her writing – it is at once factual and emotional, and is deeply affecting. Settle also covers technology, which offers a good chance to see the writer's sense of humour ('Googling the Other Thereas' is excellent) This strand in the collection offers a precise, yet witty insight into life as part of the Facebook generation, where social media rules, and any subject (political, or emotional), is up for debate.
But the best poems explore the idea of belonging.
These skilfully ruminate on the strength and complexity of the human spirit, no matter where in the world it ends up. (Rebecca Monks) Out now.
FICTION ODAFE ATOGUN Taduno’s Song (Canongate) ●●●●●
Loosely based on the Nigerian icon, Fela Kuti, Odafe Atogun’s debut novel is the story of a musician living in exile far from his homeland and his girlfriend, Lela. One day he receives a letter from her warning him that his country has fallen ever further into the hands of a dictator. Taduno returns to his native country only to find that no one remembers him or his once powerful music, and that Lela has disappeared. As Taduno fights to find her, he’s forced to make a decision between freeing his country or the woman he loves.
Taduno’s Song is a moving
story of exile, love, loss and hope. Unfortunately it isn’t a story of music or of song. The influence of Taduno’s work fails to convince as too often the narrative relies on simply telling the reader that it’s powerful with no poetry or rhythm to support this.
However, where the music fails, the surreal Kafka-esque situations that Taduno encounters are often clever, funny and thought-provoking. A subtly powerful novel which asks whether art can ever ove rcome oppression. (Kylie Grant) ■ Out Thu 4 Aug.
62 THE LIST 2 Jun–1 Sep 2016
FICTION YURI HERRERA The Transmigration of Bodies, translated by Lisa Dillman (And Other Stories) ●●●●●
Mexican novelist Yuri Herrera’s new title in English, The Transmigration of Bodies, comes as the second in a loose trilogy of novellas. Its release comes on the heels of its precursor, Signs Preceding the End of the World, which won the 2016 Best Translated Book Award For Fiction. Like Signs, it’s translated into unique yet colloquially familiar prose by Lisa Dillman, and Herrera’s literary power is, once again, in his restraint. Taking place in an unnamed Mexican city, the story follows The Redeemer, a hardboiled figure sought to broker peace between two crime families. It responds to Romeo & Juliet’s themes of blood feud and familial loss, contextualised in Mexico’s current violent milieu. But like all good crime thrillers its dramatic aspects follow all the way down to the minutiae, from a body swap to The Redeemer’s failed attempts to find a spare moment to buy condoms. Herrera brings a frenetic energy and fresh idiomatic feel to the internal wars of the faraway nouveau riche. (Nicola Balkind) ■ Out Thu 7 Jul.
FICTION ALICE ADAMS Invincible Summer (Little, Brown) ●●●●●
Invincible Summer brands itself as ‘perfect summer reading for fans of One Day’ (the critically-acclaimed novel from David Nicholls). It’s easy to see where this comparison comes from: both books introduce their protagonists in their final days of university, and subsequently stay with them as they wrestle with the problems life throws at them. Both novels feature relatable moments (young love, career lows, mature love, career highs). Alice Adams’ novel, however, does not command the reader’s attention as well as One Day. It starts off promisingly enough, with four diverse characters, Eva, Benedict, Sylvie and Lucien, graduating from university. But as they mature, they follow different paths, and the story becomes increasingly disparate. Perhaps this is perfect summer reading if you want a book that you can take to the beach and leave there. Though its premise is filled with potential, there’s not enough substance in this book for the characters to stay with you once the sun has gone down. (Rebecca Monks) ■ Out Tue 28 Jun.
COMIC BRIAN K VAUGHAN, CLIFF CHANG, MATT WILSON & JARED K FLETCHER Paper Girls 1 (Image Comics) ●●●●●
This new series penned by Brian K Vaughan (Y: The Last Man, Saga) is tinged with the sweet nostalgia of 1980s coming-of-age stories – with added aliens, of course. This collection introduces us to 12-year-old Erin Tieng, a paper girl for The Cleveland Preserver, who sets out on her route the morning after Halloween. Throw in some gnarled men in masks, other- worldly contraptions and three new friends and she's got an adventure on her hands. Paper Girls is instantly compelling, in both story and graphics. Cliff Chang's crackled artwork effortlessly recreates its 1988 setting without resorting to kitsch, and Matt Wilson's purple, pink and blue colour palette soaks every panel with the eerie glow of dawn. Like The Goonies and ET showed us, some of the best tales are all about kids on bikes riding through the suburbs and getting up to friendship-cementing scrapes – and like those stories, this one's destined to become a classic. (Yasmin Sulaiman) ■ Out now