This is an anthology from the Cajachina publishing house, the first of its collection, launched in 2007. It contains texts from the most outstanding graduates of the Onelio Jorge Cardoso literary training center up to that date.
Although it is an anthology, the voices of several authors are found within it. The narrative innovation of that time can be considered as a guiding thread, which would mark future literary work in Cuba.
Most of the stories, despite their thematic diversity, address certain elements of deep Cuba, which in other formats, such as film or television, is rarely portrayed with such lucidity and sincerity.
Whether it is because of the stories told, the narrators used, or the style that the center itself, intentionally or not, imprints on its graduates, the internal unity of the book is remarkable, because even if it addresses a story of dirty realism or one of science fiction, we can easily frame them all within the same universe.
Thus, Those Who Count is a book that is still relevant today, more than 15 years later, as it is a reflection of a society that continues to suffer from the same problems and that in the pages of this book the authors dare to show from the most diverse angles.
And until my first review #hivebookclub I hope you enjoyed it.