Things We Lost in the Fire (story collection) explained

Things We Lost in the Fire: Stories (Spanish: Las cosas que perdimos en el fuego) is a short story collection by Mariana Enriquez, published in 2016 by the Editorial Anagrama.^[1] Originally published in Spanish, it was translated into English by Megan McDowell in 2017.^[2] The work has 12 stories framed in the horror genre, in which Enríquez explores social issues such as depression, poverty,^[3] eating disorders,^[4] inequality and gender violence.^{[5] [6]} The name of the work is taken from the album Things We Lost in the Fire, released in 2001 by the American band Low, of which Enríquez is a fan.^[7]

"The Intoxicated Years" was published in Granta.^[8] "Spiderweb" appeared in The New Yorker.^[9]

Contents

Story
"The Dirty Kid"
"The Inn"
"The Intoxicated Years"
"Adela's House"
"An Invocation of the Big-Eared Runt"
"Spiderweb"
"End of Term"
"No Flesh Over Our Bones"
"The Neighbor's Courtyard"
"Under the Black Water"
"Green Red Orange"
"Things We Lost in the Fire"

Literary significance and reception

Reviews of the collection highlighted Enriquez's dark and haunting style. A review in The Guardian called the collection "gruesome, violent, upsetting – and bright with brilliance."^[10] Jennifer Szalai, writing in The New York Times, wrote "[Enriquez] is after a truth more profound, and more disturbing, than whatever the strict dictates of realism will allow."^[11]

In a review in Vanity Fair, Sloane Crosley was impressed by Enriquez's skill at using supernatural stories to explore Argentina's political turmoil: "In her hands, the country’s inequality, beauty, and corruption tangle together to become a manifestation of our own darkest thoughts and fears."^[12]

References

1. Web site: 7 October 2017 . "No quiero que me saquen las pesadillas" Babelia EL PAÍS . https://web.archive.org/web/20171007152600/https://elpais.com/cultura/2016/04/27/babelia/1461752532_057036.html . 7 October 2017 . 29 June 2023.
2. Web site: Things We Lost in the Fire by Mariana Enriquez PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books . 1 August 2019 . PenguinRandomhouse.com.
3. Web site: Quién es Mariana Enriquez, la mayor exponente de la literatura de terror en la Argentina . 29 June 2023 . infobae . es-ES.
4. Web site: "Todos mis textos están pensados como una pregunta sobre el poder" . 29 June 2023 . infobae . es-ES.
5. Web site: 10 August 2018 . Mariana Enriquez gana el premio Ciutat de Barcelona con su último libro de cuentos . https://web.archive.org/web/20180810235553/https://www.lanueva.com/nota/2017-2-1-17-7-0-mariana-enriquez-gana-el-premio-ciutat-de-barcelona-con-su-ultimo-libro-de-cuentos . 10 August 2018 . 29 June 2023.
6. Web site: 29 April 2017 . Mariana Enríquez, el terror en lo cotidiano . https://web.archive.org/web/20170429183149/https://www.revistaarcadia.com/libros/articulo/mariana-henriquez-escritora-argentina-filbo-las-cosas-que-perdimos-en-el-fuego-cementerios/63358 . 29 April 2017 . 29 June 2023.
7. Web site: 17 May 2016 . Mariana Enriquez: "Me interesa sacar el terror de los lugares comunes" - Télam - Agencia Nacional de Noticias . https://web.archive.org/web/20160517121527/https://www.telam.com.ar/notas/201605/147577-las-cosas-que-perdimos-en-el-fuego-mariana-enriquez.html . 17 May 2016 . 29 June 2023.
8. Web site: 5 October 2015 . The Intoxicated Years . 1 August 2019 . Granta Magazine.
9. Enriquez . Mariana . 12 December 2016 . Spiderweb . 1 August 2019 . The New Yorker . 0028-792X.
10. News: Self . John . 2 November 2018 . Things We Lost in the Fire by Mariana Enríquez review – gruesome short stories . 1 August 2019 . The Guardian . 0261-3077.
11. News: Szalai . Jennifer . 3 March 2017 . Argentine Fiction . 1 August 2019 . The New York Times . 0362-4331.
12. 21 February 2017 . Brooding Books for the Dark Days of Winter . 1 August 2019 . Vanity Fair.