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Death, grief and a quest for independence all come together in the Man Booker-shortlisted novel The Remainder (Coffee House Press).

Set in Santiago, Chile, The Remainder is Alia Trabucco Zeran’s debut novel and translated by Sophie Hughes. The story revolves around the lives of three children with politically-driven families and their own solitary tales combining into one.

The novel alternates between two voices every other chapter, switching from Felipe to Iquela, which can be hard to determine at first since their names are not always given right away. However, the author does a nice job at keeping both voices very distinct throughout, so once you catch on, it should be relatively easy to follow.

Felipe is consumed by the dead, finding lifeless body all over his devastated city. He is driven to find out just how many bodies are out there, starting from the largest quantity and getting down to zero, coinciding with the chapters that are numbered in descending order. In the novel’s introduction, Mortuary Maths helps shed light on this type of equation: “The pressing need for such inventory (for collecting data, bodies) is directly proportional to the need for a kind of grief that manifests in the counting of dead bodies and the recounting of stories.”

Iquela has her own obsession, albeit one milder than Felipe’s. Hers is on Paloma, as she is consumed by her friend’s arrogant coolness. Paloma, however, is dealing with her own issues: not only her mother’s death but the strange rerouting of her mother’s deceased body. This odd occurrence leads these three venturing on a road trip to Argentina, riding in an old hearse with plenty of pisco to pass around. The trip allows the three to let go of the mathematical obsessions of the dead (and the intense control their families have over them), and finally be able to figure out who they are on their own.

Death is, of course, prominent throughout this story, but so is innocence. These children are not only dealing with Chile’s deadly political history, with big thanks to their families pounding it into them, but they are also trying to deal with everyday adolescent life with the temptation of cigarettes, drugs, lust and everything else youth acquires. It’s an interesting contrast and a nice parallel to the story, making for a unique tale and read.

Imagery plays a major role throughout the novel, too. The images of dead bodies is both haunting and creatively written with lines, such as “They were scattered all over Santiago, those Sunday stiffs, weekly or bimonthly corpses which I totted up methodically, and the tally rose like spume, like rage and lava it rose.”

The Remainder is not necessarily a plot-driven novel but more focused on the characters paired with the meaning of grief, acceptance and the uncovering of oneself. It’s emotional rich but has bursts of humor spread throughout the pages, helping to lighten the sometimes very heavy load.

The Remainder is now available for purchase.

 

About Alia Trabucco Zeran

Alia Trabucco Zerán was born in Chile in 1983. She was awarded a Fulbright scholarship for her MFA in Creative Writing at New York University and she holds a Ph.D. in Spanish and Latin American Studies from University College London. La Resta (The Remainder), her debut novel, won the prize for Best Unpublished Literary Work awarded by the Chilean Council for the Arts in 2014, and on publication was chosen by El País as one of its top ten debuts of 2015. In 2019 The Remainder was shortlisted for the Man Booker International Prize.

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