G1153 Book Review of The Fragility of Bodies by Sergio Olguin
Author: Sergio OLGUIN (translated by Miranda France)
ISBN: 978-1-912242-19-1
Publisher: Bitter Lemon Press
Part of a Series: Veronica Rosenthal Trilogy
Type of book: Argentina, trains, mystery, journalism, 2000s, poverty, wealth, connections, South America, daily life, Buenos Aires, coca cola, soccer
Year it was published: 2019 (original 2012)
Summary:
When she hears about the suicide of a Buenos Aires train driver who has left a note confessing to four mortal ‘accidents’ on the train tracks, journalist Veronica Rosenthal decides to investigate. For the police the case is closed (suicide is suicide), for Veronica it is the beginning of a journey that takes her into an unfamiliar world of grinding poverty, crime-infested neighborhoods, and train drivers on commuter lines haunted by the memory of bodies hit at speed by their locomotives in the middle of the night. Aided by a train driver with whom she has a tumultuous and reckless affair, a junkie in rehab and two street kids willing to risk everything for a can of Coke, she uncovers a group of men involved in betting on working-class youngsters convinced to play Russian roulette by standing in front of fast-coming trains to see who endures the longest.
Characters:
Main characters include Veronica Rosenthal, a woman of Jewish ancestry who is passionate about journalism and justice. She is not a naive journalist, but often knows and understands that in order to get something done and solved one has to use the connections and resources. She is not interested in settling down or children, but instead enjoys sex, married men and alcohol. She also uses her looks to manipulate people into serving her. Her married lover, Lucio, happens to be a simple man who has a clear record of not cheating with his wife prior to meeting Veronica. He comes from a long line of train engineers. The two young boys are friends and were born in poverty and will do whatever they can to try to escape their lives, be it playing soccer or doing dangerous stunts. Rafael is a former junkie who lost custody of his young daughter and is trying his best to stay on The narrow path.
Theme:
Don't give up on mystery
Plot:
The story was written in third person narrative from Veronicas, as well as two boys', Lucios and Rafaels. Each character is complex, human and very fascinating. The characters also range from wealth to being poor, which I liked, and it definitely feels as if the author had done a lot of research and turns this research into a very engaging tale starring a memorable and wonderful heroine.
Author Information:
(From book)
Sergio Olguin was born in Buenos AAires in 1967. His first work of fiction, Lanus, was published in 2002. It was followed by a number of successful novels, including Oscura Monotna Sangre (Dark Monotonous Blood,) which won the Tusquets Prize in 2009. His books have b een translated into German, French and Italian. The Fragility of Bodies is his first novel to be translated into English, and is first in a crime series of three novels featuring Veronica Rosenthal. Sergio Olguin is also a scriptwriter and has been the editor of a number of cultural publications.
Opinion:
First of all, wow, and when will books 2 and 3 come out in English because I can't wait to read them! I honestly loved this book to pieces! I loved the setting, which I don't have familiarity with, but enjoyed learning details. I also loved the characters and the daily life they experienced on both sides of the track. And I loved learning about something I hadn't given much thought to in terms of trains and engineers. In my opinion, everything was done well, from the plot to details to characters. And something I appreciated is that the main character was a Jewish woman who seemed all too real and was written realistically ( hello periods, drinking and unabashed love of sex!)
This was given to me for a review
5 out of 5
(0: Stay away unless a masochist 1: Good for insomnia 2: Horrible but readable; 3: Readable and quickly forgettable, 4: Good, enjoyable 5: Buy it, keep it and never let it go.)
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