Kimberle (Electric Literature's Recommended Reading Book 268)

3.3/5 ( ratings)

"Obejas, if you don’t know, is a Cuban-American poet, translator, journalist, novelist, and short story writer, and “Kimberle” is a highlight of her new collection, The Tower of the Antilles, translated from Spanish by herself. On one level, it’s a portrait: Kimberle is that friend you have who comes and never leaves. She’s up for anything and everything. She’s the one who will take you on joyrides, get you involved in threesomes, makes you fall in love with her. She’ll also steal your books and drop racist comments at times, so subtle that you think you might be crazy but when it comes time take her to task she’s onto the next antic. She’s the friend you need to keep alive but you know you might die trying. Kimberle is too flesh and blood to be entirely mythic, but she has that mystique of the disturbing lost girls of Eighties and Nineties pop: She’s just 16 years old, leave her alone they say. Or Janie’s got a gun, her whole world’s come undone. Or girlfriend in a coma, I know, I know, it’s really serious. Kimberle is the one who makes it though, just maybe." - Porochista Khakpour

About the Author: ACHY OBEJAS is the author of the critically acclaimed novels Ruins, Days of Awe, and three other books of fiction. She edited and translated the anthology Havana Noir, and has since translated Junot Díaz, Rita Indiana, Wendy Guerra, and many others. In 2014, she was awarded a USA Ford Fellowship for her writing and translation. She currently serves as the Distinguished Visiting Writer at Mills College in Oakland, California. The Tower of the Antilles is her latest work.

About the Guest Editor: Porochista Khakpour is the author of the forthcoming memoir Sick , and the novels The Last Illusion — a 2014 “Best Book of the Year” according to NPR, Kirkus, Buzzfeed, Popmatters, Electric Literature, and more — and Sons and Other Flammable Objects — the 2007 California Book Award winner in “First Fiction,” a Chicago Tribune’s “Fall’s Best,” and a New York Times “Editor’s Choice.” She is currently writer-in-residence at Bard College, adjunct faculty at Columbia University, and visiting faculty at VCFA’s MFA program.

About the Publisher: Electric Literature is an independent publisher amplifying the power of storytelling through digital innovation. Electric Literature’s weekly fiction magazine, Recommended Reading, invites established authors, indie presses, and literary magazines to recommended great fiction. Once a month we feature our own recommendation of original, previously unpublished fiction. Recommended Reading is supported by the Amazon Literary Partnership, the New York State Council on the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Arts. For other links from Electric Literature, follow us, or sign up for our eNewsletter.