Something is happening around the globe: mass movements of peoples, dislocations of language and culture in the wake of war and economic crises -- ...
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Jan 17, 2010
Jacob
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All dead men don’t fall from the sky. They don’t all float down the Hudson and come to rest against smooth moss-covered rocks at the water’s edge. Some of them are your fathers, your uncles. Some of them lose the battle slowly. Some die hating the world.
(“A Strong Dead Man,” p. 184)
A man proposes to his former girlfriend once a year on their daughter’s birthday. A reporter for the newspaper mourns his father as he writes a story on the city’s clowns. Children go to war on More...
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Feb 06, 2008
César
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I will admit my not-so-secret crush on Daniel Alarcón. His "City of Clowns" still haunts me, while "Third Avenue Suicide" brings back so much pain and sadness... War by Candlelight remains a close, meaningful favorite.
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Dec 15, 2007
Larissa
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I picked up War by Candlelight as part of my new project: To find contemporary (possibly American?) authors whose work wouldn’t immediately turn me off with snarky postmodern pyrotechnics and faux quirkiness, with concepts and plotlines that outstrip the prose, with the constant I-Get-It-Do-You-Get-It? nudge-nudging that seems to be the currency in which so many contemporary writers traffic in. This is not, of course, to say that all self-aware, reflexive, fanciful writing is garbage—simply tha
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Mar 20, 2009
Paige
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First of all - this is Daniel's first book - and I was lucky enough to actually meet a teaching colleague of his that passed it to me at the hostel in Montana where I spent time out of Oregon in 2003. This was before the book was actually published. It was an unedited paper bound piece that he had shared with his colleagues. I didn't get to keep it - but was able to read it in the short time I had available - and it's a remarkable "statement" of life in modern day war torn Peru - wh
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Aug 14, 2011
Will
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In War by Candlelight, Daniel Alarcon shines a flickering light on a piece of modern Peruvian history. On, and it’s 1989, with two fighters in the jungle, one about to die; off, then on again, and it is 1966 where the father of one of those fighters is proudly sending his son off to university; off, then on, and it is 1983 and Fernando, the doomed fighter, is returning from a tour in the insurrection and pestering his wife to have another child. Flick off then on and it is 1973 when the fighter’
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Dec 30, 2008
Kirsten
rated it:
Really, wow. I am a bit impressed. I did not really enjoy Lost City Radio, but I gave the stories a chance, because I really liked what I read in Granta. I'm glad I gave it that chance.
From Absence:
"Leaving is no problem. It's exciting actually; in fact, it's drug. It's the staying gone that will kill you. This is the handed-down wisdom of the immigrant. You hear it from people who wander home, after a decade away. You hear about the euphoria that passes quickly; th More...
From Absence:
"Leaving is no problem. It's exciting actually; in fact, it's drug. It's the staying gone that will kill you. This is the handed-down wisdom of the immigrant. You hear it from people who wander home, after a decade away. You hear about the euphoria that passes quickly; th More...
Jun 21, 2011
Leila
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I bought this book for a work trip to Peru and started reading it after spending a day in Lima, where many of the stories take place. That, and the fact that one story takes place in NYC a block from my childhood apartment, may have enhanced my sense of connection to the book. But I think anyone reading it would feel the same sense of immediacy and intensity. Alarcon's writing is honest and clear, like a modern Latin Hemmingway. An interview in the back reveals that he left Lima as a child and w
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Oct 29, 2008
David
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The stories in this debut collection are extraordinary. Daniel Alarcón was born in Lima, raised in Alabama, spent time in Peru as a Fulbright scholar, and now lives in Oakland. Most of the stories in "War by Candlelight" are set in Peru; three take place in New York City. Whether writing about political instability in Lima or emotional turmoil in Manhattan, Alarcón writes with a kind of unobtrusive brilliance that is astonishing. I'd finish one of these stories, marvel at how awesome i
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Aug 19, 2007
Tom
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People are expecting a lot from Daniel Alarcón. He's a New Yorker darling, beloved by Colm Toibin, and now one of Granta's top young writer's in America. This collection, which I read mostly at Long Beach on Long Island in the summer of 2006, has some very fine pieces in it. My friend Aaron reminded me of "City of Clowns" last night, about a young boy who helps his father remodel the houses of his rich schoolmates while simultaneously casing them for robbery. I also liked "lima, p
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Apr 11, 2009
Mike
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Daniel writes several short stories in this book, his first outing in print.
Being compared to Flannery O'Connor is heady stuff, but I think he acquits himself very well.
Many of the stories you wish were longer; definitely the mark of a good author.
Having been to Peru twice, I can plainly see many of the pictures he paints about life in Lima.
I look forward to reading more of his work.
Being compared to Flannery O'Connor is heady stuff, but I think he acquits himself very well.
Many of the stories you wish were longer; definitely the mark of a good author.
Having been to Peru twice, I can plainly see many of the pictures he paints about life in Lima.
I look forward to reading more of his work.
Aug 12, 2010
Paul
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Really great. I enjoyed this a lot more than Alarcon's novel. Without sacrificing any worldiness, Alarcon gets much more personal here, and the stories resonate much deeper. "A Science for Being Alone" was incredible. Really moving. Some of the stories are really masterful in terms of how they handle time -- nothing incredibly new, but still done well. And for their variety, they hold together well.
Jan 03, 2011
Aram
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This was the first book I've read by Alarcon. It is all short stories and very well written. Alarcon has an excellent sense of setting a scene and how to make his characters come to life in a very short amount of pages. I will definitely read his novels and want to see what he does going forward. He is a young man with a fantastic amount of talent!
Feb 07, 2009
Jason
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A remarkable collection of stories about Peru, and Peruvians living in New York. Everyday people living through war, poverty, hopelessness, and geological disasters, and finding a way through the day. Poetically observant and socially aware, Alarcon's writing sings with beauty and savagery, rich with humanity.
Aug 04, 2011
Plenty of modern short story collections are uneven -- hits and misses both abound between the covers -- but this book is solid all the way through. Two stories in particular, "A Science for Being Alone" and "Third Avenue Suicide," simply and quietly broke my heart. Highly recommended.
Nov 21, 2011
Mark
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Still by far one of the best collections of short stories I have ever read. And i felt that way before Daniel became a friend. One of the most talented young writers of our time. These stories punch you in the gut, they make you search for your own story.
Dec 16, 2009
Michael
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Honestly, I wasn't thrilled with this one. I read Alarcon's 'Republica and Grau' in the The New Yorker a few months ago and enjoyed his realism, his way of portraying extreme poverty in an unsentimental manner. All of the stories in this collection are solid, but none of them really deliver in the end. 'City of Clowns' is the most memorable - the story of a journalist travelling through Lima - his hometown - and seeing it an whole new lot, behind the anonymous guise of a clown. Alarcon's rev
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Jun 18, 2009
Judd
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An interesting book -- a Peruvian writer who grew up in Alabama and now lives in SF -- and good stories, but only one or two of them really grabbed me. "A Science for Being Alone," was my favorite. I liked Alarcon's descriptions of Lima, but, for the most part, I had a hard time connecting with the characters.
Dec 02, 2011
Dan
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An excellent collection, Daniel Alarcon really shows the diversity of his influences - both the urban-American New York and urban/suburban Lima. He mixes the rhythm and flow of classic Latin American authors with the structure of the contemporary minimalist in a way that is both appropriate and enjoyable.
On the other side of the coin, Alaracon does have a tendency to lose himself here and there, and while the diction is very good it still just misses the mark of greatness set by Junot More...
On the other side of the coin, Alaracon does have a tendency to lose himself here and there, and while the diction is very good it still just misses the mark of greatness set by Junot More...
Dec 04, 2010
Anna
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Some of the stories in this book were fairly bleak, but there was enough beauty to make them worth it. it's lyrical but a fairly quick read (I was able to fit it in while trying to finish grad school readings for the quarter...).
Nov 20, 2010
ingrid
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Award-winning writer. Great way with words. Some of these stories have been in the New Yorker mag. Peruvian themes.
May 15, 2010
my dear friend amanda dixon suggested this read, so far I am really enjoying his writing style...i'll keep you posted.
Nov 03, 2010
Ryan
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Alarcón's short stories are restrained, unassuming. He’s not overdoing them with catchy metaphors, but they can be poetic. He keeps them interesting enough to turn the page. The stories are distinctly Latin American, above average. Not a book to be hyper about but you get some sense of what is possible.
Some of Alarcón's stories can be accessed online at The New Yorker site. He is in fact just recently crowned by the magazine as one of the "20 under 40" - top fiction writers u More...
Some of Alarcón's stories can be accessed online at The New Yorker site. He is in fact just recently crowned by the magazine as one of the "20 under 40" - top fiction writers u More...
Jul 05, 2011
Jacquelinelborda
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I am no a short stories lover. Daniel Alarcon changed my views. Read in English.
Jul 28, 2008
Arturo
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Relatos desde fuera de casa. Más que postales o reportajes de fondo para una revista, personajes que aclaran la realidad de un país y textos que narran la vida minúsculas de grandes seres.
Daniel Alarcón, peruano o norteamericano logra en este libro lo que la literatura necesita, más allá del sentimentalismo por la pobreza su retrato bien logrado, sin caer en el hiperrealismo ni en la banalidad, logra mostrarnos con palabras que la tan llamada 'realidad' no es la misma para todos y qu More...
Daniel Alarcón, peruano o norteamericano logra en este libro lo que la literatura necesita, más allá del sentimentalismo por la pobreza su retrato bien logrado, sin caer en el hiperrealismo ni en la banalidad, logra mostrarnos con palabras que la tan llamada 'realidad' no es la misma para todos y qu More...
Jan 26, 2011
Reema
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so far, so good. i admired the structure of city of clowns, when it came out, and the meandering way the story worked to its explosive moments. this writer is def thoughtful, angry talent. some eerily wise passages here that get perfectly the experience of other-ness, in a way that's also kinda yeah, well, thats just how it is, mang. stories arent all even so far, but im willing to be patient . . .
Jul 29, 2009
Kelly
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Daniel Alarcon's a rising voice in new fiction. He wrote this before Lost City Radio, and the stories show both his promise and how much he's grown as a writer since he wrote them. They are fascinating, beautifully descriptive, and occasionally a teeny bit sentimental or teetering right on the verge of cliche. A fantastic read while traveling in the Andes... keep your eye on this guy.
Nov 14, 2007
katie
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i'm totally digging this book -- i've even developed a bizarre crush on the author for being so brilliant. favorite stories so far: "absence", "third avenue suicide", "city of clowns", "lima, peru, july 28, 1978". he's awesome, and totally appeals to the pseudo-artist in me... i just wanna create the visual counterpart to his glorious text.
okay, that's it so far :)
okay, that's it so far :)
Jun 26, 2008
Kelly
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The stories haunt me. They were graphic and violent and fierce, sometimes I'd close the book and wonder why I was putting these images in my mind. Other times I'd want to read to understand the bigger world out there. It doesn't all have to be tragic and frightening, but so much of it is.
