First published 2015
Oscar "Chino" Uribe works as a journalist for a Lima tabloid when his philandering father dies. The death forces Oscar to face uncomfortable truths about his father's secret second family and the questionable values that shaped his own life. Oscar begins documenting the lives of street performers who work as clowns throughout Lima's dangerous neighborhoods. These sad figures survive on the margins of a violent and corrupt city. As Oscar spends time with the clowns, he enters their strange world where reality blurs with performance. The investigation becomes personal as Oscar grapples with his father's legacy and his own moral compass. Daniel Alarcón adapts his acclaimed short story into a graphic novel with artist Sheila Alvarado. The visual format captures Lima as a living presence in the story. Sharp contrasts between light and shadow mirror the tensions between truth and deception that run through Oscar's journey.
Genres: literary-fiction, mystery, crime, contemporary
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: coming-of-age, found-family, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Lima, Peru
Period: 21st-century
144 pages · Hardcover · Riverhead Books
Content warnings: death