Felipe Bonasera, a discreet diplomat and
amateur ventriloquist, is diagnosed a serious illness that leads him to retire
and move to the coast to rest. He leaves behind in Madrid the talking puppets
of Mae West, Marilyn Monroe and Marlene Dietrich, with which he entertains his
friends in private parties, although the voice of Mae West does not abandon him
and he will maintain hilarious dialogues with her. While everyone else is
completely involved in the games of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, the exdiplomat becomes interested in Pilar
Meneses, his neighbor whose husband has disappeared
under confusing circumstances, and in Borja, her handsome and elusive son. With
the two of them, he will live a story whose atmosphere is reminiscent of the
golden years of Hollywood. Alluding to this glamourous
time period, the novel is a showcase for unforgettable characters such as Carmeli, the lively cleaning lady; or the beautiful people of the housing
development, led by Leoncio and André (who will soon
receive the nicknames of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas); or a local
newspaper reporter whose articles will deconsruct,
piece by piece, the case of the disappearance of Pilar
Meneses’ husband.
Eduardo Mendicutti was born in Sanlúcar de Barrameda (Cádiz) in 1948. In 1972 he moved to Madrid where he
obtained a degree in Journalism and where he has lived ever since. He has won
prizes such as the Café de Gijón and the Sésamo. He has published over ten books that have
been translated into several language and enthusiastically
acclaimed by critics and readers alike. Two of his novels, El palomo cojo (The
Limping Pigeon) and Los novios búlgaros (The Bulgarian
Boyfriends), have been brought to the big screen, the first directed by
Jaime de Armiñán and the second by Eloy de la Iglesia. His novel El ángel descuidado (The Careless Angel) won the Critics Prize in Andalucía in 2002.
Praise for his
previous novel, Ganas de hablar:
“Eduardo Mendicutti is
one of the most serious writers in contemporary Spanish narrative. Through the
use of humor, of unsolemn subjects, of frivolity and
matters of the heart, his words always add salt to the open wound.” Luis García Montero
“His novels are always at their best when they are comical and humorous.
He offers us fun stories that stem from the lucid observation of society and
that ridiculize deeply rooted conventions.”El Mundo
“Yes, Ganas de hablar tells hilarious and sad stories, both. Mendicutti has made use of dark and side-splitting humor to
combat silence.” El País
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