The Sky Over Lima: 'A beautifully written novel' - Andr Aciman, author of Call Me By Your Name

(Paperback)

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Description

Peru, 1904. Jos Glvez and Carlos Rodrguez are poets. Or, at least, theyd like to be. Sons of Limas elite in the early twentieth century, they scribble bad verses and read all the greats, especially their idol Juan Ramn Jmenez, the Spanish Maestro. Desperate for Jmenezs latest work, unavailable in Lima, they decide to ask him for a copy. Convinced Jmenez wont send two dilettantes his book, but he might favour a beautiful young woman, they write to him as the lovely, imaginary Georgina Hbner. Jmenez responds with a letter and a signed copy. Elated, and now the talk of their literary circle, Jos and Carlos write back. Their correspondence continues as the Maestro falls in love with Georgina, and the boys abandon poetry for the pages of Jmenezs life. Set against the vibrant backdrop of bohemian taverns and social unrest in Peru at the turn of the century, The Sky Over Lima is being hailed as the most assured and inventive literary novel to come out of Spain in years.

Reviews

Heres a tale with the subtlest of stings in it, dark wit and telescopic perspective aplenty. And then there's the intoxicating folly of the games that the protagonists play with fantasy and fact, malice, tenderness, ambition, envy and other forces that strike at our most vulnerable selves. Ill be thinking of these characters, what they longed to create and what they managed to despoil, for a long time.

* Helen Oyeyemi, author of Peaces *

This marvelous story is stitched together by the seduction of three epistolary lovers, distant acquaintances that together conquer reality and fantasy, transporting us to an imaginary world that is at once refreshing, comic, and sublime. The conquest in this novel, a game played by one writer and his readers, captivates, drawing us in through the seductive power of a monumental young author.

* Laura Esquivel, bestselling author of Like Water for Chocolate *

'A solid, marvelously written narrativeThe meticulous language, the ability to delve into the human psyche, the finely-tuned portraits of characters and the landscape of Peru in the earlier twentieth century, with is social upheaval, strikes, brothels, the rubber industry (the reader might be reminded ofThe Dream of the Celtby Mario Vargas Llosa), plus the storys literary web, all wisely employed, turnThe Sky over Limainto a novel to be read with supreme pleasure until its been completely devoured.'

* Estado Crtico *

Based on a true story, Spanish poet and writer Brcenas first novel transforms fact with cinematographic imagination, recreating the scenery and moods of Lima at the turn of the twentieth century with inimitable precision.

* Booklist *

'A beautifully written novel, chock-full of sharp humor and penetrating insight,The Sky over Limahas at its heart a captivating, ventriloquistic love story, not unlike the classic Cyrano de Bergerac. But in this epistolary romance, the woman is a fiction written by two boys - reminiscent in their way of Bolaos Visceral Realists - who come alive on the page as impeccably-wrought emissaries of their time and place, while remaining incredibly relatable and engaging to readers today.'

* Andr Aciman, author of Call Me By Your Name *

An intriguing tale of transatlantic catfishing ... Brcena grounds the literary games in a richly detailed, early 20th-century Lima and its cast of secondary characters: dock workers, prostitutes, caf-haunting literati. Its lightly ironic tone darkening as it proceeds, the novel sensitively explores how a literary prank shapes the sentimental, romantic, and moral education of Carlos.

* Publishers Weekly *

Charming...A love letter to the creative process.

* Kirkus *

'Brcena shines where so many writers stumblehis writing about art, of the artifice both in the narrative and implicit in his prose, feels alive, fresh and important. His words, which so easily could have become overwrought when translated into English, feel subtle and whimsical in Rosenberg's deft hands. Against the fascinating backdrop of Lima's burgeoning rubber industry,The Sky Over Limaexplores notions of class, identity, and friendship, and reminded me of how it first felt to fall in love with writing.'

* Sara Novi, author of Girl at War *

'A highly recommended read. Dont miss out on this novel.

* Emilio Gonzlez Bou, Propera parada: cultura *

Masterfully shows how to write a story thats simultaneously a comedy, a tragedy, and a portrait of another culture. The style is magnificent, the narration told with originality, pulse, and rhythm. Theres little more to say: read Gmez Brcena.

-- Care Santos, El Cultural

'A solid, marvelously written narrativeThe careful language, the ability to dig into the human psyche, the finely-tuned portraits of characters and the landscape of Peru in the earlier twentieth century, with is social upheaval, strikes, brothels, the rubber industry (the reader might be reminded of The Dream of the Celt by Mario Vargas Llosa), plus the storys literary web, all wisely employed, turn The Sky over Lima into a novel to be read with supreme pleasure until its been completely devoured.'

* Estado Crtico *

'Gmez Brcena succeeds at turning this singular moment into fiction with flying colorsThe narration of this minimalist work flows and advances like an afternoon bike ride.'

* Buensalvaje *

Author Bio

Juan Gmez Brcena's short-story collection The Sleeping was hailed as one of the best debuts of the year in 2012 by El Cultural. The Sky Over Lima is his first novel. He lives in Madrid, Spain. Andrea Rosenberg is a translator from the Spanish and Portuguese and an editor of the Buenos Aires Review. She lives in North Carolina, USA.