I GAVE YOU EYES AND YOU LOOKED TOWARD DARKNESS by Irene Solà

Translated by Mara Faye Lethem

Poor Margarida is stuck watching the annoyingly slow death of that old crone Bernadeta. Never mind that Margarida has herself been dead for years. She’s been pulled from the afterlife to witness this pathetic spectacle. And let’s not mention the hullabaloo from the witches downstairs. You see, they all share a common forebear - Joana - and, well, this is her fault. Joana made a pact with the devil to find a husband. He delivered. But when Joana saw the suitor’s missing toe she tried to back out. And you can guess how that went down.

I Gave You Eyes and You Looked Toward Darkness is a thick, gut churning stew of body horror and hilarity, drawn from age-old Catalonian folklore. Solà brilliantly weaves the stories that have been passed down to her into the fates of Joana’s family. Admittedly, it’s a tough dish to digest. Solà’s prose is as dense and daunting as the story she tells. There are sentences on which you might well choke. And chances are you’ll feel your lunch making its way back up your gullet from time to time. But this is no mere book. It’s a visceral experience.

Just tremendous.

I Gave You Eyes and You Looked Toward Darkness by Irene Solà (Tr. Mara Faye Lethem)
Granta, 2025
159 pages