The Stars - by Carlos Maleno (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

From the author of The Endless Rose comes a deeply psychological story of a photographer obsessed with capturing the true essence of human nature. The Stars will take you on a journey through the darkest parts of the human condition to uncover luminous beauty that is all too often overshadowed. 

When Jordi Carrera, a shy photojournalist from Barcelona, agrees to catch up with a few of his colleagues to celebrate what might be a Pulitzer Prize-winning photo, one of them is found dead by an apparent suicide. Shaken but undaunted, Jordi picks up where he suspects his friend left off, taking a trip down to southern Spain on his own account in hopes of getting some worthwhile photos related to news stories of what seem like underage prostitutes' suicides. In the process, he disappears from the lives of Emma, the first woman he's ever loved, and of Joao Silva, his fellow photographer. If they look for him, what will they find?

About the Author

Carlos Maleno is a short-story writer, novelist, and sales broker for a produce company in Almería, Spain, the place of his birth and his current residence. His debut, The Irish Sea (Dalkey, 2017), won Spain's Argaria Prize for Best Narrative Work in 2014.

Eric Kurtzke is a translator. He graduated with a BA in English Literature from the University of Notre Dame. He has worked as an assistant editor for Dalkey Archive. He is now working on a number of translations from Spanish. His translation of Maleno's The Irish Sea was shortlisted for the Queen Sofía Spanish Institute Translation Prize in 2018. Don't miss his translation of Alberto Olmos's short story "Every Last One, Place and Date," in Best European Fiction 2019 (Dalkey Archive). Eric Kurtzke is based in Falls Church, Virginia.