Working as a cook on a merchant ship, a woman comes to know and love Samsa, a woman who gives her the nickname "Boulder." When Samsa gets a job in Reykjavik and the couple decides to move there together, Samsa decides that she wants to have a child. She is already forty and can't bear to let the opportunity pass her by. Boulder is less enthused, but doesn't know how to say no--and so finds herself dragged along on a journey that feels as thankless as it is alien.
With motherhood changing Samsa into a stranger, Boulder must decide where her priorities lie, and whether her yearning for freedom can truly trump her yearning for love.
Once again, Eva Baltasar demonstrates her preeminence as a chronicler of queer voices navigating a hostile world--and in prose as brittle and beautiful as an ancient saga.
The International Booker Prize was presented in London on May 23. The prestigious award honors the finest works of translated fiction from around the globe with the goal of spotlighting a diversity of international literature. Read on to learn about the thirteen nominated books, the shortlisted titles, and the winner.