My experience as an intern this summer at And Other Stories has been a dream. As part of my work, I was tasked with setting up a Spanish literature reading group, which was thankfully bolstered with the recommendations of a group of helpful translators. Due to their help, I was exposed to a rich variety of texts and literature from el mundo hispanohablante.
The texts which stood out to me the most were Mariana Travacio’s Quebrada, Valeria Tentoni’s El color favorito and Greta García’s Solo quería bailar. Three texts, all written by Spanish-speaking women, yet all with wildly different preoccupations. Quebrada is a novel set in the cliffs above the Argentine pampa and depicts the trials, tribulations and guilt that comes with migration and leaving your home behind. El color favorito is an inquisitive essay, peppered with personal anecdotes so you feel as if you’re conversing with Tentoni herself, which wants to know where writing begins and whether it can truly be mastered. Solo quería bailar is the funniest of the lot, with a no-filter internal monologue that’ll have you saying, ‘I can’t believe she just said that!’ throughout.
Each of these women have written deeply psychological works that have been insightful and I am sure will be a source of introspection and enjoyment to many others. In the spirit of Women in Translation Month, which has been a staple of every August since 2014, please don’t hesitate to get involved and engage with these brilliant works of literature. On our reading group page you will find summaries, translated excerpts if you don’t read the language, and a discussion box where you can leave your comments and thoughts.
The reading group will meet on Monday the 2nd of October on Zoom at 18:00 (BST), and a link will be provided upon request if you email emmanuel90999@gmail.com.