Always witty, often absurdist, these stories offer a mesmerizing glimpse into the daily lives of couples, families, and neighbours living the new normal of the 21st century. A husband seeks revenge on his wife as they stalk author Peter Stamm; an out-of-work bartender fills his empty days by shoving bananas into the tailpipes of parked cars; a mysterious ritual, spied through a neighbour's window, arouses deadly spirits.
Jordi Nopca talks with Dimitri Nasrallah about his collection, Come on Up, and the embattled world he portrays with an unresolved past and an uncertain future.
Jordi Nopca is the author of two novels and the short story collection Come On Up. Named a “Young Catalan Writer to Watch” by Culture Trip, his books have received the Proa and Documenta Prizes. Nopca is also an award-winning journalist whose work has appeared in Time Out Barcelona and Words Without Borders. Born in Barcelona in 1983, Nopca is editor of the newspaper Ara and its literary supplement Ara Llegim. Come On Up is his first book of fiction to appear in English.
Photograph of the author is courtesy of Violeta Gumà.
Come on Up, translated from Catalan by Mara Faye Lethem, was published in the US by Bellevue Literary Press.
“In Lethem’s witty translation from Catalan, the 11 stories [of Come On Up] are heartbreaking and hilarious, tender and violent.” — New York Times Book Review
Documenta Prize Winner
La Vanguardia “Best Fiction of the Year” selection
Bookshop.org “New Releases” selection
Powell’s Books “New Literature in Translation” selection
Symposium Books “New Releases” selection