Death As a Side Effect

Ana María Shua has published more than forty books in many genres, including poetry, children's fiction, and Jewish folklore, and her work has been translated into numerous languages. She received a Guggenheim Fellowship for work on The Book of Memories and is the author of Microfictions, available in a Bison Books edition. She lives in Buenos Aires. Andrea G. Labinger's many translations include Alicia Steimberg's Call Me Magdalena and The Rainforest, both available in Bison Books editions.

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"Shua laces her small, powerful narrative with humor, and her insight into the human condition, particularly in her vision of a city run amuck, has resonance."-Publishers Weekly Publishers Weekly "Death as a Side Effect strikes a brilliant balance between the downbeat subject matter and the dark humour running through the whole novel. It is absurd, bleak and funny. Ernesto is an everyman character who is both frustrating to observe and easy to sympathise with, and his father is compelling and repellent in equal measure. For all its craziness, Death as a Side Effect is an accessible satire about ordinary family life, and a book that should be added to those holiday wish lists."-Andy Barnes, Belletrista -- Andy Barnes Belletrista "Originally published in 1997 and translated into English for the first time by Andrea G. Labinger, Death as a Side Effect uses dark satire to effectively meld societal and personal tribulations."-Tim Gebhart, Blogcritics -- Tim Gebhart Blogcritics "Shua's finest moments occur when she portrays individuals confronting the spectre of death in their own ways, or when a son's initial resentment dissolves when he discovers an epistolary-and far more enduring-means of escape."-Karen Rigby, Fore Word Reviews -- Karen Rigby Fore Word Reviews "[Death as a Side Effect is] not to be mistaken for a light, optimistic read, but the quality of writing and the deftness of characterization make it a satisfying one."-Matthew Tiffany, Booklist -- Matthew Tiffany Booklist "Shua's poetic novel is full of ironic twists that keep the suspense high until the very end."-Dana Heather Schwartz, Literary Review -- Dana Heather Schwartz Literary Review