FIRST LOVE and LOOK FOR MY OBITUARY: Two Novellas

by Elena Garro ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 1, 1997

Two thematically related long stories, which won Mexico's Sor Juana Inâs de la Cruz Prize, detail in melodramatic and overly digressive fashion the plights of lovers separated by the forces of convention and prejudice. In ""First Love,"" a young woman vacationing in postwar France with her mother falls in love with a German POW, with predictable results. Garro never explains why enemy prisoners on work detail are allowed enough latitude to daily with compassionate tourists, and the story is blemished by such awkward rhapsodizing as ""There was harmony between nature and their pure, agile bodies."" Its companion narrative murkily traces the consequences of an unhappily married man's encounter with a mysterious girl whose disappearance is later explained as her submission to an unwanted arranged marriage. Very slight work that vanishes from your mind the moment you've turned the last page. Surely Sor Juana deserved better.

Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1997

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: 112

Publisher: Curbstone

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 1997

Categories: FICTION