Fragile Night
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
The stories in Fragile Night explore the hearts and minds of women and men facing once-in-a-lifetime decisions and struggling against weakness, fear, and anger. In "What La Llorona Knew" a mother shares with her daughter a tragic secret that brings them closer together. In "The Remedy" two quarrelsome sisters drive their parents to distraction until the local curandera prescribes a remedy guaranteed to instill compassion in the most argumentative soul. The stories move between humor, lyricism, and tragedy as the characters emerge from their trials strong and unafraid to face the challenges and risks of life.
“. . . a lovely collection of stories—honest, luminous, humorous, and very touching. It reached my heart.” —Ursula K. LeGuin
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In Duarte's debut collection of 15 short snapshots of barrio life, the women tend to be martyrs and the men philandering ne'er-do-wells. "Penguin's Mother" introduces a woman who "As far as anybody knew.... had never committed a mortal sin." This brave and long-suffering character is all too typical of the heroines we encounter in the tales, yet Duarte makes us understand how their situations are related to cultural influences, especially the expectation that Latin women are obliged to endure their husbands' infidelities and frequent violence. One of the few stories that avoid this formula, "The Remedy," is a charming tale of two sisters who won't stop bickering until their father takes them to the local curandera. Others fall short of strong opening premises, as in the title story, in which Alma's decision to stand up to her abusive husband comes too abruptly for credibility. Duarte's ambition to take on complex emotional terrain is admirable, but many of her humble protagonists remain one-dimensional, defined by heavy symbolism rather than deft characterization.
