Crooked Plow
| Author | Itamar Vieira Junior |
|---|---|
| Original title | Torto Arado |
| Country | Brazil |
| Language | Portuguese |
| Set in | Bahia, Brazil |
| Publisher | Verso Fiction |
Published in English | June 27, 2023 |
| Awards | 2018 Prêmio LeYa, 2020 Prêmio Jabuti, 2020 Prêmio Oceanos |
| ISBN | 1839766409 |
Crooked Plow is a translated novel (Portuguese: Torto Arado) by Brazilian author Itamar Vieira Junior. It tells the story of two Afro-Brazilian sisters, Bibiana and Belonísia, who experience a life-altering tragedy in childhood. The sisters live as tenant farmers with their family in Chapada Diamantina, Bahia state, Brazil. The novel won numerous literary awards.
Summary
Section I and II:
The book's first sections are told through the eyes of sisters Bibiana and Belonísia. The story begins with the sisters sneaking into their grandmother's room and locating a knife beneath her bed, locked away in a suitcase. Tempted, they each put the mysterious knife in their mouths. One sister is unharmed, but the other cuts her tongue so severely that she is never able to speak again. The sisters become emotionally and mentally entwined as one must be a voice for the other. "That's how I became a part of Belonísia, just as she was becoming part of me...we felt like Siamese twins, sharing the same tongue to make the words that revealed what we needed to become." They grow up together in their parent's Afro-Brazilian sharecropping village in Bahia state, Brazil.
As childhood ends, a pregnant Bibiana secretly leaves the family home with her boyfriend, a local union organizer. Together, they plan to fight deep-rooted injustices. However, they shortly return home with their newborn baby to find that Belonísia has married an abusive drunk.
Section III:
The last part of the book is told through the eyes of Santa Rita the fisherwoman, an African divinity who was summoned by her father and channels the community's anger and strength.
Background
The author, Itamar Vieira Junior (b. 1979) was born in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. He received a Master's degree in Geography and a PhD in Ethic and African studies from Universidade Federal da Bahia. His doctoral research focused on the ongoing struggles of quilombos, the Afro-Brazilian communities organized by escaped slaves and their descendants.[1]
Critical Reception
The book received numerous positive reviews. Americas Quarterly stated the novel "captivated Brazil's literary scene" with a "tour de force of injustice, tragedy, affection and human dignity reminiscent of Victor Hugo's Les Misérables or John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath," [2] the Financial Times listed it as one of the Best Books of the year in 2023, "[Brazil's] deep-rooted racial and economic injustices are laid bare in one of the most celebrated Brazilian debut novels of recent times"[3] and Publishers Weekly wrote, "Vieira Junior conveys the girls' childhood confusion and wonder in hypnotic prose, and he brings the close-knit Água Negra to life. This heralds the arrival of a welcome voice."[4]
The English translation also garnered positive acclaim as a "gorgeous translation" by NPR and "skillful translation" by the Financial times.[5][6] The translation was nominated for the International Booker Prize, which is an award for works translated into English.
Latin American Literature Today. [7]
Verso Books [8]
Awards
2018 Prêmio LeYa[9]
2020 Prêmio Jabuti[10]
2020 Prêmio Oceanos[11]
2024 International Dublin Literary Award (Longlist)[12]
2024 International Booker Prize (Longlist)[13]
References
- ^ Vieira Junior, Itamar (2023). Crooked plow. Translated by Lorenz, Johnny. London New York: Verso. ISBN 978-1-83976-640-4.
- ^ Camila, Camila (October 19, 2021). "Book Review: Torto Arado". Americas Quarterly. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
- ^ "Best books of 2023 — Fiction in translation". www.ft.com. Retrieved 2024-03-31.
- ^ "Crooked Plow by Itamar Vieira Junior". Publishers Weekly. June 1, 2023. Retrieved 2024-03-31.
- ^ Meyer, Lily (August 19, 2023). "3 works in translation tell tales of standing up to right wrongs". Retrieved March 27, 2024.
- ^ "Crooked Plow by Itamar Vieira Junior — the lost voices". www.ft.com. Retrieved 2024-03-31.
- ^ ""The Land and Time of Torto Arado" by Marcelo Cordeiro de Mello - Latin American Literature Today". 2021-11-19. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
- ^ "Translating Crooked Plow". Verso. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
- ^ ""The Land and Time of Torto Arado" by Marcelo Cordeiro de Mello - Latin American Literature Today". 2021-11-19. Retrieved 2024-03-31.
- ^ Assé, Ralph (2020-11-26). "'Torto arado' vence o prêmio Jabuti de Romance Literário". Estado de Minas (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 2024-03-27. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
- ^ "Prêmio Oceanos consagra 'Torto arado', romance de Itamar Vieira Junior". O Globo (in Brazilian Portuguese). 2020-12-18. Retrieved 2024-03-31.
- ^ IGO (2024-01-16). "Crooked Plow". Dublin Literary Award. Retrieved 2024-03-26.
- ^ Creamer, Ella (2024-03-11). "Latin American fiction 'booms' again on International Booker prize longlist". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-03-26.