Safe Return Doubtful

translated from the Spanish (Argentina) by Chris Andrews – published 2016

Set on the wild plains of Patagonia this is Aira at his best, weaving a fantastical tale of the search for a missing young boy that triggers an epic adventure all told with his usual economy of words, in less than 150 pages.

There’s no knowing where an Aira novel will head, his trademark witty and clever twists take it to a direction impossible to guess. Even the genre the next chapter will be from is a mystery.
This is a less philosophical work than some of his translations and an easier and more plot driven read, though..it’s not quite that simple.

Ultimately, it’s a wonderful piece of storytelling, and the great writer at height of his powers.

THE ABYSS THAT opened before Delia Siffoni had (and still has) a name: Patagonia. When I tell the French I come from there (barely lying) they open their mouths with admiration, almost with incredulity. There are a lot of people all over the world who dream of traveling some day to Patagonia, that extreme end of the planet, a beautiful and inexpressible desert, where any adventure might happen. They’re all more or less resigned to never getting that far, and I have to admit they’re right. What would they go there to do? And how would they get there, anyway? All the seas and cities are in the way, all the time, all the adventures. It’s true that tour companies simplify trips quite a bit these days, but for some reason I keep thinking that going to Patagonia is not so easy. It is something quite different than any other trip.

I was fortunate enough to visit Patagonia frequently in the five years I was in Chile, between 2007 and 11. Fortunately, Aira is quite right..

My GoodReads score 5 / 5