Skip to main content
Letters from Latin America with Leo Boix: November 26, 2024
Short stories by Mexican Guadalupe Nettel, labyrinthine tales by Uruguayan Mario Levrero, and a poetic paranormal investigation by Colombian poet Catalina Vargas Tovar
BOIX

EACH of the eight short stories in The Accidentals (Fitzcarraldo, £12.99), by Mexican writer Guadalupe Nettle and translated by Rosalind Harvey, is a perfectly constructed tale of extraordinary force and luminous intelligence, in which family relationships and the strange in everyday life coexist.

An uncle, having drifted away from his family and passing away in a hospital, unexpectedly receives a visit from his niece; a wildfire ignited by an ordinary family on a short break reveals underlying tensions; a surreal brothel marked by a pink door where time shifts abruptly; and a suburban garden featuring a struggling monkey puzzle tree that troubles a family, are some of the tales found in this captivating collection.

Among my favourite stories in this book is the one that gives the book its title. This precise narrative weaves the story of migrant children from Mexico, their dreams, aspirations and anguish, shedding light on diasporic experiences at a time when many Latin American countries suffered bloody dictatorships.

Support the Morning Star
You have reached the free limit.
Subscribe to continue reading.
Morning Star call for advertising
More from this author
colourists 1
Exhibition review / 21 March 2025
21 March 2025
While the group known as the Colourists certainly reinvigorated Scottish painting, a new show is a welcome chance to reassess them, writes ANGUS REID
family
Film of the Week: / 20 March 2025
20 March 2025
ANGUS REID recommends an exquisite drama about the disturbing impact of the one child policy in contemporary China
BL
Short Story / 7 February 2025
7 February 2025
The phrase “cruel to be kind” comes from Hamlet, but Shakespeare’s Prince didn’t go in for kidnap, explosive punches, and cigarette deprivation. Tam is different.
fanon
BenchMarx / 28 January 2025
28 January 2025
ANGUS REID deconstructs a popular contemporary novel aimed at a ‘queer’ young adult readership
Similar stories
boix
Literature / 28 January 2025
28 January 2025
LEO BOIX reviews Cuban poet Carlos Pintado; Mexican poet Diana Garza Islas; Mexican American writer and critic Rigoberto Gonzalez; and Brazilian poet Haroldo de Campos
best of lantinX
Best of 2024: Letters from Latin America / 6 December 2024
6 December 2024
LEO BOIX selects the best books of fiction, poetry, and non-fiction written by Latinx and Latin American authors published this year
Latinx
Letters from Latin America / 14 October 2024
14 October 2024
Mexican Yuri Herrera’s novel about Benito Juarez in New Orleans, and poetry by Mexican Fabio Morabito and Argentine Sergio Chejfec
boix
Letters from Latin America / 16 July 2024
16 July 2024
Short stories by Bolivian Liliana Colanzi, a novel by Mexican Mateo Garcia Elizondo, and epic poetry by Nicaraguan Pablo Antonio Cuadra