THE RETURN PB – ROBERTO BOLANO-CHRIS ANDREWS

One of the remarkable qualities of Roberto Bolano s short stories is that they seem to tell what Bolano called the secret story , the one we ll never know . The Return contains thirteen unforgettable tales bent on returning to haunt you. Wide-ranging, suggestive, and daring, a Bolano story is just as likely to concern the unexpected fate of a beautiful ex-girlfriend, the history of a porn star or two embittered police detectives debating their favourite weapons: his plots go anywhere and everywhere and they always surprise. Consider the title piece: a young party animal collapses in a Parisian disco and dies on the dance floor; just as his soul is departing his body, it realizes strange doings are afoot – and what follows next defies the imagination (except Bolano s own, of course). This treasure trove of disquieting short master-works from the giant of Latin American literature perfectly encapsulates the fact that Bolano writes with such elegance, verve and style and is so immensely readable (Guardian).