Trout Belly Up - by Rodrigo Fuentes (Paperback)

About the Book

Loosely related short stories set in the peaceful surrounds of rural Guatemala, where violence, gangs, extortion, and menace are never far away.

Book Synopsis

In seven interconnected short stories, the Guatemalan countryside is ever-present: a place of timeless peace, and the site of sudden violence. Don Henrik, a good man struck time and again by misfortune, confronts the crude realities of farming life, family obligation, and the intrusions of merciless entrepreneurs, hitmen, drug dealers, and fallen angels, all wanting their piece of the pie. Told with precision and a stark beauty, Trout, Belly Up is a beguiling, disturbing ensemble of moments set in the heart of a rural landscape in a country where brutality is never far from the surface.

Review Quotes

Gabriel García Márquez Short Story Prize (Finalist)
Society of Authors TA First Translation Prize (Shortlist)

"While each of the shorts could stand alone--and do, rather successfully--deciphering and connecting the overlapping threads provides enhanced literary pleasure." --Shelf Awareness, starred review

"Fuentes's prose is emotionally resonant and smartly constructed....These satisfying stories are full of surprises." --Publishers Weekly

"A smart, controlled debut from a writer who addresses poverty and criminality in a variety of registers." --Kirkus

"Fuentes is a consistently engaging and original writer...it is a joy to find writing of such high quality." --The Times Literary Supplement

"With grace and humility, Rodrigo Fuentes has written a subtle, luminous, memorable book." --Rodrigo Hasbún, author of AFFECTIONS

About the Author

Considered to be one of the most prominent names among the new generation of Guatemalan writers, Rodrigo Fuentes (1984) won the Carátula Central American Short Story Prize (2014) as well as the Juegos Florales of Quetzaltenango Short Story Prize (2008). He is the co-founder and editor of the magazine Suelta and of the digital publishing house and literary journal Traviesa .

Trout, Belly Up was shortlisted for the 2018 Premio Hispanoamericano de Cuento Gabriel García Márquez, the most prestigious prize awarded to short-story writers in Latin America. It has been published in Guatemala, Bolivia, Chile and Colombia, as well as in France. Rodrigo currently lectures at the College of the Holy Cross in the United States, and lives between Providence and Guatemala. This is his first book to appear in English.

Ellen Jones is a writer, editor, and translator from Spanish. Her recent translations include Beyond Mestizaje: Contemporary Debates on Race in Mexico edited by Tania Islas Weinstein and Milena Ang (2024), Cubanthropy by Iván de la Nuez (2023) and The Remains by Margo Glantz (shortlisted for the Warwick Prize for Women in Translation 2023). Her monograph, Literature in Motion: Translating Multilingualism Across the Americas is published by Columbia University Press (2022). Her short fiction has appeared in LitroMagazine, Slug and The London Magazine .