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A review by sarah_e_j
Quesadillas by Juan Pablo Villalobos
4.0
I won this book through Goodreads First Reads.
It's a story set in Mexico, that starts off as a basic tale of a family's struggle to survive. It throws up serious issues of poverty and equality but they are handled with humour, which makes this book an enjoyable read about a difficult subject.
I loved the writing style and the story was engaging throughout, meaning I easily finished it over a leisurely day's reading because I didn't want to put it down.
The ending was unexpected, it turns into more of a fantastical story, which highlights the ridiculousness of the situation. Personally I would have preferred a bit more of a rounded ending with 'what happened next', maybe still encompassing the fantasy element, but just more of a traditional 'end' to the story. That's just personal taste though - perhaps I'm just not forward thinking enough to be entirely happy with an ending that I'm sure would be enjoyed by a lot of people!
As an aside, the actual edition of the book itself is lovely. A very high quality paperback, which would certainly have me interested in other books from the publishers (And Other Stories).
Reading this book was a lovely way to use a long afternoon.
It's a story set in Mexico, that starts off as a basic tale of a family's struggle to survive. It throws up serious issues of poverty and equality but they are handled with humour, which makes this book an enjoyable read about a difficult subject.
I loved the writing style and the story was engaging throughout, meaning I easily finished it over a leisurely day's reading because I didn't want to put it down.
The ending was unexpected, it turns into more of a fantastical story, which highlights the ridiculousness of the situation. Personally I would have preferred a bit more of a rounded ending with 'what happened next', maybe still encompassing the fantasy element, but just more of a traditional 'end' to the story. That's just personal taste though - perhaps I'm just not forward thinking enough to be entirely happy with an ending that I'm sure would be enjoyed by a lot of people!
As an aside, the actual edition of the book itself is lovely. A very high quality paperback, which would certainly have me interested in other books from the publishers (And Other Stories).
Reading this book was a lovely way to use a long afternoon.