Andrés Barba in conversation with Anthony Marra

Spanish writer Andrés Barba discusses his newly translated novel, Such Small Hands, with Anthony Marra.

 

Light refreshments will be served.

 

 

 

 

Shirley Jackson meets The Virgin Suicides in a masterwork from the Spanish writer at the peak of his powers.

 

Life changes at the orphanage the day seven-year-old Marina shows up. She is different from the other girls: at once an outcast and object of fascination. As Marina struggles to find her place, she invents a game whose rules are dictated by a haunting violence. Written in hypnotic, lyrical prose, alternating between Marina’s perspective and the choral we of the other girls, Such Small Hands evokes the pain of loss and the hunger for acceptance.

 

 

Andrés Barba first became known in 2001 when his novel La hermana de Katia, shortlisted for the Herralde Prize, was published to considerable public and critical acclaim. It was followed by Ahora tocad música de baile, Versiones de Teresa, winner of the Torrente Ballester award, and Agosto, octubre, Muerte de un caballo, for which he won the 2011 Juan March short novel award, Ha dejado de llover, and his latest work, En presencia de un payaso. His books have been translated into ten languages. 

 

Anthony Marra is the New York Times-bestselling author of A Constellation of Vital Phenomena, longlisted for the National Book Award and winner of the National Book Critics Circle’s John Leonard Prize, the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award in fiction, and the Barnes and Noble Discover Award. His latest book is the story collection, The Tsar of Love and Techno.