On the first day of the 2023 season of the book competition Canada Reads, a panel of Canadian celebrities voted out a bestselling horror novel by Canadian-Mexican writer Silvia Moreno-Garcia.
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| Photograph by Martin Dee via Silviamoreno-garcia.com Licensed for editorial purposes |
Mexican Gothic was a runaway success when it appeared in 2020. It tells the story of a rich young woman, Noémi, who is trying to rescue her cousin Catalina, who fears for her life in the mysterious family into which she has married. Instead of an American seaside home or a British estate like Manderley in the classic Daphne Du Maurier novel Rebecca, Moreno-Garcia's novel is set in an uncanny countryside house in 1950s Mexico.
Favourably reviewed by critics in the Guardian, the New Yorker, National Public Radio, and the Washington Post, it has had a wide appeal across borders and has been translated into languages from Arabic to Thai.
Noemí is [...] an unlikely rescuer: She’s a glamorous debutante, and her chic gowns and perfect red lipstick are more suited for cocktail parties than amateur sleuthing. But she’s also tough, smart, and has an indomitable will, and she is not afraid — Synopsis from the author's website
Tasnim Geedi, the TikTok star who entertains over 100,000 followers who enjoy her thirty-second book reviews, paid tribute to the immersive quality of the novel as she championed the book on Canada Reads. She described Mexican Gothic as a fantasy setting where the problems of colonialism can be explored in a distanced way that may appeal to readers who are not ready yet to confront directly Canadian history.
Her fellow panelists and rivals, amongst them Jeopardy! champion Mattea Roach and actor Michael Greyeyes, paid tribute to the author's rich imagination and style.
However, books set beyond Canadian borders face an uphill battle on Canada Reads. Science fiction author Cory Doctorow's short story Radicalized was also voted out early in 2020 on the grounds that it was set in the United States.
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| Cover of Mexican Gothic via Wikipedia Fair use |
Canada Reads has been broadcast annually on CBC Radio and on television since 2002. The show's panelists have included the current Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, and comedian Samantha Bee.
Sources
"About Silvia Moreno-Garcia" [Silvia Moreno-Garcia] Retrieved March 27, 2023.
"Canada Reads" [Wikipedia] Retrieved March 27, 2023.
"Meet the Canada Reads 2023 contenders" January 25, 2023. [Canadian Broadcasting Corporation] Retrieved March 27, 2023.
"Mexican Gothic" [Silvia Moreno-Garcia] Retrieved March 27, 2023.
The full episode is published by the CBC on Youtube: Canada Reads 2023: Day One .
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