Biography
Elisa Victoria was born in Seville in 1985. She has published two books of short stories, Porn & Pains in 2013, and La sombra de los pinos in 2018, and has contributed to several anthologies. Her debut novel, Oldladyvoice, was published in Spanish in 2019 to great critical acclaim and was selected as Book of the Week by El País.
Reviews
AK Blakemore
The Guardian
‘More than anything, [Oldladyvoice] is hugely good fun. Victoria’s prose is effervescent, her jokes never miss their marks, and the observations of her young narrator feel as tender as they do authentic. I loved this wise, warped little jewel of a novel.’
New York Times
‘Elisa Victoria handles the child’s narration dexterously . . . Relying on short, declarative sentences, Victoria has a knack for bringing characters to life in few words.’
Ben Brooks
‘Sad, funny, sharp, and poetic: the best possible ingredients for a book. The perfect chronicle of a smart girl in a stupid world.’
Vice
‘Perfectly captures what it was like to be a kid in the mythologised ’90s.’
Phrasebook
‘As a general rule, I am opposed to fiction written from the perspective of a child. It’s not that I’m uninterested in childhood as a concept, or even in children themselves – far from it – but some writers use childhood as a lazy shortcut, an easy way to introduce such broad themes as “innocence lost.” . . . Happily, the Spanish writer Elisa Victoria’s debut novel, Oldladyvoice (translated by Charlotte Whittle), is the exact opposite of this. . . Childhood makes a lot more sense when you remember that children are basically madcap little degenerates, fascinated by their own filth, and I love that Victoria isn’t shy about portraying this.’
El Mundo
‘A tender and poignant story, full of light and just the right amount of wickedness.’
Elvira Linda
El País
‘From the first page, a seductive universe comes into view. It’s similar to love at first sight, and there’s no need for hesitation, just for the most innocent surrender.’
Paula de Aguirre
Le Cool Barcelona
‘Good novels find their protagonist’s voice and make the reader feel close to them. Such is the case of Oldladyvoice. […] The magic of Oldladyvoice also lies in its supporting characters (the grandmother, mother and mother’s boyfriend) and the conversations they have with Marina, which can make you smile and break your heart in the same line.’
César Prieto
Efe Eme music magazine
‘Marina is firing the last bullets of her childhood, and she does it in a clean, powerful shot of poetry, hope, and zest for life.’