You Glow in the Dark

Starred review from December 18, 2023
Bolivian writer Colanzi makes her English-language debut with a shimmering collection focused on the ruinous consequences of human folly. Some stories portray ecological disasters, such as “Atomito,” in which an otherworldly being takes hold of a community ravaged by pollution from a power plant; and “Chaco,” about a vengeful Indigenous spirit corrupting the grandson of the man who drove his people from their land to make room for an oil plant. Colanzi draws loosely on the 1987 radiation accident in Goiânia, Brazil, for the eerie title story, in which a community unknowingly embraces radioactive waste left behind by a greedy corporation. Other entries delve into folklore and religion. In “The Cave,” a pregnant woman defies convention by going out to hunt rather than resting. After she gives birth to twins, which are believed in her community to be a sign of wrongdoing, she takes a drastic and unsettling action. “The Narrow Way” depicts sisters who grow up sequestered from the outside world in their controlling church community, where they manage to find joy in music. Taken together, the stories paint an arresting portrait of corruption, industrialization, the power of nature, and supernatural forces. Readers will be captivated. Agent: Laurence Laluyaux, RCW Agency.

Starred review from December 15, 2023
Bolivian writer Colanzi's latest collection, which earned her the Ribera del Duero International Short Story Prize. Tinged with futuristic flourishes and set largely in the Bolivian Altiplano, these stories examine the aftermath of terrible trespasses, mostly only whispered about. The opening story, "The Cave," emerges in fragments--a prehistoric mother, a time traveler, and a pair of star-crossed lovers are just a few who run across the title locale--showing the fleeting transience of people across the arc of time. Most notably, a pair of stories break down the mechanics and the radioactive consequences of colonialism. In the future, "Atomito" is the name of the heroic mascot of an industrial nuclear plant in South America that's not only poisoning people but also corrupting a society looking for blame. Conversely, the sharp title story that ends the collection shows the raw consequences of a real 1987 event known as the Goi�nia accident, in which hundreds were poisoned with radioactivity. Because short stories are fleeting, they're sometimes lacking in characterization, but Colanzi is gifted at focusing on people during their most intense moments while simultaneously indulging her interest in time and its capacity to bury dark deeds. "The Debt" finds a young woman on the verge of giving birth grappling with her heritage, and "The Narrow Way" shows forbidden fruit's effect on an isolated faith. Meanwhile, "Chaco" wanders into straight-up horror with the story of a young man possessed by the Indigenous Mataco man he murdered. The longer stories are richer but the shorter entries don't lose a step. In fact, the most bitter story, "The Greenest Eyes," concerns a girl who, in a Grimm-like fairy tale, longs for "the mint-colored eyes of her dreams," only to lose paradise in the process. The "alien gaze" is a keen instrument for dissecting the human condition, and Colanzi employs it to great effect here.

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February 1, 2024
This slim story collection by Bolivian writer, editor, and journalist Colanzi contains seven entries, each told in taut, sharp prose that will beguile, enthrall, and astound. The first story, ""The Cave,"" opens with a prehistoric woman giving birth first to one child--described as ""a damp salamander""--then another, before she commits acts of brutality and mercy; the story then catalogs millions of years inside the dank cave as mutating bats, troglobites, runaway lovers, a Dominican friar, and fungi shelter there. ""The Debt"" recounts a woman's clandestine trip with her ""aunt,"" but their cover unravels after a rumbling motorbike ride, the discovery of a drowned man's body, and rubbery seafood cause the nauseated protagonist to vomit up ""the river's dark, furious, unstoppable surge."" In ""The Greenest Eyes,"" a young girl dials 666-666 to make a bargain with the devil, ""surprised how easy it was to give up the Kingdom of Heaven."" In 2017, Colanzi was named one of the 39 most promising Latin American writers under 39, and her talent and stature continue to grow.

COPYRIGHT(2024) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.