The Dinner Guest

by Gabriela Ybarra, Natasha Wimmer (Translator)

Overview

An autobiographical novel that pieces together the kidnap and murder of her grandfather, reflecting on the impact of private pain and public tragedy.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781945492242
Publisher:	Transit Books
Publication date:	05/28/2019
Pages:	150
Product dimensions:	5.25(w) x 8.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Gabriela Ybarra was born in Bilbao in 1983. She currently lives in Madrid, where she writes and works in social media analysis. The Dinner Guest is her first novel and was published to critical acclaim in Spain, where it won the Euskadi Literature Prize 2016. Her work has appeared in publications such as El País, ABC, and Revista Eñe.

Editorial Reviews

03/18/2019

Ybarra draws on two deaths in her family for this affecting, memoirlike novel, her first to be translated into English. In 1977, three masked assailants burst into the house of Ybarra’s paternal grandfather, Javier, a prominent businessman in the Basque Country of Spain. They kidnap him and later demand an exorbitant ransom. Ybarra imagines the family’s desperation over their inability to provide the sum, and the lengths they go to, including using divination and a complicated scheme to communicate with Javier via crossword puzzles. Even the discovery of Javier’s body after about a month of captivity provides incomplete closure to the family. In 2011, Ybarra’s mother, Ernestina, is diagnosed with cancer. She immediately moves to New York for treatment, where Ybarra takes a leave of absence from school and work to be with her. Ybarra revisits sites of Ernestina’s treatment following her death and reflects on the pain of her loss. Ybarra favors deep emotion over clear explanations and provides only passing references to her family’s wealth and the political components of the kidnapping. This novel’s honest rawness of coming to terms with premature death will resonate with readers. (May)

Publishers Weekly

"A seamless blend of art, politics, and private life."—NPR

"A narrative of conflicts, near-miracles, and ultimate tragedies that makes for an explosive and compelling read."—World Literature Today

"This autobiographical novel is one of the most fascinating debuts of this year."—Book Riot

"Inventive . . . Ybarra brings us through the process with the objectivity and forensic eye of a true crime writer, allowing glimpses of poignancy . . . the mother's grace and courage in the face of death is captured by her daughter . . . The writing sparkles throughout . . . Ybarra has done herself and her family proud in a story that is full of light and shade."—The Irish Times

"Intriguing and sharp."—Metro

From the Publisher