BARRIO BUTTERFLY

Two defense attorneys fight a case against long odds.

In this third installment of a legal drama series featuring Star Gwiazda and Tadeusz “Zenko” Luczek, Charns turns to the case of an undocumented immigrant on trial for a rape he did not commit. Lawyers Star and Zenko, childhood sweethearts from Michigan who turned into platonic colleagues in North Carolina, are chosen to serve as public defenders for José Martínez, a Salvadoran immigrant accused of raping his girlfriend’s 9-year-old daughter, Mariposa Garcia. The attorneys face an uphill battle, with a hostile judge making their defense difficult and a victim who is clearly lying about the identity of her attacker. Salvadoran gangs, United States foreign policy, and the shifting political climate all contribute to making it hard for Star, Zenko, and José to find justice. Charns has created a pair of compelling protagonists whose similarities (both suffer from mental illnesses controlled by treatment) and differences (Star is resolutely atheist while Zenko’s Roman Catholicism shapes his worldview) make them effective foils for each other. The dark screwball comedy of their interactions can be a delight to read. (The subtle humor is also evident in an effective scene where Zenko, after a frustrating day in court, takes great pleasure in ordering his dog, named Judge, to sit.) The courtroom scenes are well done, blending technical details with plot development. But other parts of the text are not as well developed: The pacing is uneven and the secondary characters are somewhat flat. Mariposa, in particular, seems uncaring or malicious until her reasons for lying are revealed in the book’s final pages. In addition, the story describes the physical effects of her violent rape in graphic detail, which some readers may find excessive. Still, Charns does a good job of presenting the case as a micro-level instance of the harm done by official incompetence, preconceived notions, and U.S. involvement in El Salvador, allowing the novel to explore broad themes of justice.

An engrossing and thought-provoking, if uneven, courtroom tale.